Our Broken Pieces – Power to Restore
Christ literally walked in our shoes and entered into our affliction. Tim Keller
The pain and heartache of our brokenness may sometimes make us feel isolated and alone. We may feel as if no one fully understands the depth of what we are going through. This may be our reality in the natural, but what a comfort it is to know that we are never alone, especially in our brokenness. Our Saviour, Jesus Christ, is acquainted with brokenness. He not only experienced the brokenness in His body when He died on the cross for our salvation, but also the agony of being alone, separated from His Father. But His story did not end there, and neither does our story. Jesus’ broken body was restored when He rose from the dead. Not only was His broken body restored, but He was also restored positionally to His rightful place at the right hand of God. His rightful position of authority and power (Hebrews 12:2).
Since all power and authority are ascribed to Him, we have the assurance that He is more than able to heal and restore that which is broken in our lives. When Jesus restores, He does so because of His unfailing love, His kindness, grace and mercy towards us. He desires to heal and restore. And that is what He does when we surrender our brokenness to Him. He takes our broken pieces and makes something beautiful out of them in His established time. Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT) says,
“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.”
Beauty For Ashes
God knows our story – from beginning to end. He knows every detail of our lives. After all, He formed us and knit us together in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13-14). In Isaiah 61:1-3, the Lord speaks powerfully restorative words through the prophet Isaiah to the people of Israel during their time of captivity in Babylon. These words are given to bring comfort to their broken hearts. These words of comfort God speaks to us now in our brokenness. In verse 3 (NLT), Isaiah imparts God’s message of healing and restoration. This is what he says,
“To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory.”
These words are not just empty words; they are God’s promises of restoration to us. When we give Him our sorrow and despair, he takes our garment of heaviness and clothes us in His royal robes. He places a crown of dignity and worth on our heads. He clothes us with a garment of beauty that displays His grace and eternal love so that He may be glorified.
The glory of Christ is such, that it is of a transforming nature. It’s of a powerful nature: it changes all that behold it into the same image; it reaches to the bottom of the heart, to the most inner soul; it is a sight that purifies and beautifies. Jonathan Edwards
Reflection
Are you feeling alone in your brokenness? Will you consider Jesus, the man of sorrows who was broken for you? Will you consider coming to Him and allowing Him to bring His healing and restoration in His time?
Prayer
Thank You, Lord Jesus, that Your body was broken on the cross and sacrificially offered up for me. Thank You that Your death brought my healing and restoration. I give You my garment of heaviness. Heal and restore me, Lord. Clothe me with Your royal robes, Your garment of beauty, so that You may be glorified in my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.
