“I break everything,” I whimpered with tears streaming down my face. I stared down at the floor to see the bright, yellow, broken pieces of my brand new happy face mug. I was about eight years old, and I had received this glass mug as a gift only moments ago. My dad has detailed this story for me multiple times, as he remembers the defeat he could see in my face and as I looked up at him with the shattered pieces of my new present at my feet. I was a pretty clumsy kid, and while I didn’t break everything, I did break a lot of things. I wonder if you have ever felt like that.
A porcelain mug is easy to replace, but what about life altering decisions that you can’t change.
Sometimes we can be left feeling like we are just a failure at life. One of my daughters is just like me. She’s pretty clumsy, “Sorry baby girl, it’s all my fault!” Nobody is perfect, but beyond the everyday slips and trips, aren’t we all clumsy at times with our choices, actions and thoughts? We all have a propensity to do the wrong thing, when we should do the right thing.
Just like my Dad saw sorrow in my face over my butter fingers dropping a brand new present, I’ve seen the same defeat on my little girl’s face when she has disobeyed in the same way again and again. Without a word from her lips, I can read her sweet face that says, “I break everything.” My mother’s heart breaks when I see such sadness on my daughter’s face. Not only because of the visible defeat, but the disappointment in my own heart. I want my kids to love and honor God and be rewarded for making the right choices, and I’m so sad when they don’t.
How much more does our Father desire good things for us?
Not many of us wake up every morning wondering what sort of mischief we can get into. I would venture to say that most of us start out with plans to do good. Plans to be kind, and hopefully, plans to follow God with all our strength. Sometimes, it doesn’t take long for things to go bad though does it? Often, before our feet hit the floor, we’ve already taken a turn for the worst. It shouldn’t surprise you to hear that everyone has the exact same struggles.
There isn’t one of us that is more broken than the other.
We all have pieces that we are working hard to put back together. And every single one of us is completely helpless to do it on our own. We need Jesus. Psalm 34:18 reminds us that, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in Spirit.” What a comfort these words are to weary and broken souls. To know that our Father is closer when we are sad and saves us when our soul is in despair, allows the heavy heart to beat again with new life.
So if you’re feeling like little girl Shannon staring at the broken pieces of your life, be encouraged. You are in good company. Life is a series of falling apart and being put back together. It is a beautiful thing to let the Creator of the entire universe come to restore the shattered shards that litter our life. There is no one who knows us better, and none is more eager to get started on the work of restoration. I encourage you today to give God your broken pieces, and allow Him to lovingly start putting things back into place. There is no better Healer than the one who created you, knows you and loves you.
