Psalm 22:15, 24
My strength has dried up like a broken clay pot, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You, God, have left me to die in the dirt.
The LORD doesn't hate or despise the helpless in all of their troubles. When I cried out, he listened and did not turn away.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
When I moved all of my “treasures” from one antique store to another recently, I dropped a little decorative plate. It splintered into about 5 pieces. This was not an expensive plate – I probably paid at most a couple of dollars for it at a garage sale or auction. But it was beautiful… a robin’s-egg blue scalloped edge tipped in gold, delicate pink roses and raised white dots called a “moriage” technique. It would have been a perfect accent for a shelf or display cabinet… or a nice little dish to set out with a few candies for guests.
I carefully gathered up the shards and put them in a container and brought them home. I could have dumped this plate into the trash, but instead, I got out my bottle of glue and began to reassemble the piece. I still don’t know if it will hold together – or if so, for how long – but it’s worth a shot. Once glued, this plate still has potential. It can be tucked in behind something else so that the broken parts are not readily visible. It still has purpose… beauty… value.
To God, we are the broken plates. While HE did not drop us or cause us to break, in our sin and our “humanity” we did just that. But we still have value… worth… beauty… purpose. God knows this. He stands ready to glue the pieces back together. We may not be the same. Like the plate, there may be rough edges and little cracks where a splinter or two were not recovered. But God will fill in the rough spots. He will make us whole, useful, and able to serve once again.
The key to being restored and repurposed is to acknowledge God. It may seem like He deserts us from time to time… leaves us on the scrap heap in a zillion broken shards. But this is not the case. He is waiting for us to reach up to Him and believe that He can fix us… that He can heal the broken parts and restore us to serve another day. Have you called on God lately? Are you piled up on the scrap heap, wallowing in self-pity? Or are you standing ready to be reglued… repaired… repurposed… and given another chance? The choice is yours…what will you do?
©2011 Debbie Robus
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