I hate my flaws. They are ugly, a sign of weakness and of failure. Sin. Pain. Accusations That I do not measure up in this world, that I will never be enough.
My enemy loves to point them out and use them as a weapon to isolate me. Sometimes, I allow him to do it. That is not God's desire. Although Satan (literally "adversary/accuser") seeks to accuse me even before God, God's word speaks a more powerful truth to me. 1 John 2:1 says that when I sin, I "have an advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One." Jesus is my defender, and by His blood shed in my place, I can stand innocent before God.
Then what do I do with my flaws? How can I look at them without constantly being filled with shame and regret? The answer (please do not laugh) might just be found in natural wood furniture.
I love furniture and wood work that displays the natural grain in the wood. The swirls, the knots, the cracks. All this may make some throw the wood away as unusable, undesirable. Ever feel that way, like you have been discarded as "undesirable?
Woodworking, however, is art. In the hands of an artist, the "ugly" can become beautiful. This is true not because the artist is talented, but because the artist loves to create. The Artist loves his creation.Nowhere is this truer than with God. Unless you are Adam or Eve, you were created after the fall. You still contain a reflection of the divine, as you were created in God's image. Yet you are also flawed and fallen. More importantly than that, you are dearly loved by your Creator.
Psalm 139:13 declares that God "knit us together in our mother's womb." Did you get that? Even though we are a product of our mother and father, God was also intimately involved in our creation. God also foreknew all the sins and mistakes of our life before we were even born. Could it be somehow that His sovereignty even worked through our disobedient free-willed choices, with the plan to create something beautiful out of them? Can He take my sin, my pain and even my brokenness, and somehow still be glorified by it?
Do not misunderstand. I do not suggest this as a licence to sin. Romans 6:1-2 clearly states "What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it?"
"The Broken Beautiful" - Ellie Holcomb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpOXrY4BHMA
Romans 8:28 reminds us that "we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to His purpose." This is only true for those who have accepted His free gift of salvation. And for those that are in relationship with Him, and desire to be used for His kingdom, He will bring beauty from our deepest pain.
"Nothing Is Wasted" - Jason Gray
He can use our "shameful" past to allow us to feel empathy for others that struggle and give them more grace than we thought we could. Our own forgiveness from God can allow us to forgive others and show them undeserved mercy. Our deepest wounds, when placed in the loving and healing hands of God, can become "sacred wounds." These wounds can become avenues of ministry to bring healing to others. Or as Paul put it in 2 Corinthians 1:4, "comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God."
For those who are know God, may this be a source of joy and strength to persevere. For those who are "religious," this may seem like we must do something more on our part. God did not come so that we could do religious things. He came to restore a relationship. To those who have no idea what any of this means, but you are weary and hope beyond hope that there could be something more, God says this:
"At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, because this was Your good pleasure. All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son desires to reveal Him.
Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:25-30)
If you finally recognize that you are not simply at the end of the rope, but that you are free-falling without a hope, know that God desires to give you hope. He loved you enough to take on flesh and blood, live a perfect life (Yep. NO mistakes. Not even looking down on those who did.), and then payed the full weight of every sin ever committed by every person in the ENTIRE human race. He allowed His own creation to murder Him, so great was His love for you. Better still, His love for you was so powerful, that He even defeated death, so that when this life is done, you can spend all eternity with the one who loves you more than you could ever imagine. Accept God's free gift. Thank Him for His gift. Go out and ask His help as you seek to join a church, His family here on Earth. Like any family, it may be a bit dysfunctional, but we exist in community to strengthen and love each other.
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