More Than I Was

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I knocked my cheap little lamp off of the bedside table a while back. Its ceramic base broke into three or four pieces. It wasn’t a big deal – like I said, it was a cheap little lamp, and it’s not like I was emotionally attached to it or anything. But dang, I was annoyed with myself.

Somebody more handy than I would have gotten out the superglue and stuck it back together. And part of me kept thinking I should do that. I was raised by children of the Depression; my mother actually rinsed out Ziploc bags and reused them. The idea of throwing away a lamp (even a cheap one) that was probably quite reparable just goes against my thrifty, waste-not-want-not upbringing.

But I’m not sure I even have any superglue in my house. (Should I be ashamed of that? I’m choosing not to be.) And I wasn’t inclined to run out to the store just for glue. I have another lamp. It’s not like I was desperate to keep this last-minute Walmart find from a couple decades ago.

So, into the trash it went. I couldn’t use it anymore. It was broken.

Broken.

What an ugly word.

Damaged. Injured. Defective. Broken.

It’s a word I’ve applied to myself sometimes. Because I have been just that.

I’ve been cracked, fractured, pulled into pieces. I’ve been rendered unusable, worthless, of no value to anyone. I’ve come to the point of being beyond self-repair.

Thankfully, I knew Somebody more handy than I.

While looking up something else entirely the other day, I stumbled across some pictures of a Japanese art called Kintsugi. Broken ceramics are repaired with gold and lacquer, giving you a piece more beautiful than the original. And more valuable.

Ohhh, friends. How powerful is this.

I was broken. WAS. I am no longer. I am now more than I was before. Because of the brokenness. More useful. More valuable. More beautiful? I don’t know if I can go there . . .

But I’m more. Definitely more. He gives us beauty for ashes . . . 

Comments

  1. AnonymousMay 15, 2023 at 7:20 AM

    I love this message of hope you have shared with all of us!

    ReplyDelete
  2. DianaMay 15, 2023 at 7:30 AM

    This was so good! I never thought of me being repaired better than new!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Barbara HigdonMay 15, 2023 at 8:48 AM

    Beautiful thoughts! We are all filled with streaks of God’s gold!

    ReplyDelete

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