Last week I went for a cruise to enjoy some of the lovely weather. I stopped at an abandoned farmhouse to take some photos and captured this shot of some broken glass. The whole house was in disarray, windows were smashed, the interior lying in ruins. Yet, there was something beautiful about the way the light was reflecting through the house. I have heard it said before how there is beauty in the brokenness around us.
This photograph reminded me of another situation I encountered recently. I was caring for a patient who was suffering from cancer. This lady clearly had faced some tough times in her past. During my time with her we had a brief discussion about how we can find joy in whatever situation we are in. The patient seemed to have an amazing attitude that she would be thankful and giving of herself regardless of how the cancer had impacted her family, independence, and appearance. She emanated a certain beauty amidst her brokenness.
The photograph above also reminded me of a speaker I heard at a conference a year ago. The guy talked about how God makes our brokenness beautiful. He talked about how we are all sinful and our lives are marred by our disobedience against Him. Just like the house I visited or the patient I spent time with, we all have brokenness within which requires drastic intervention. The speaker discussed how our brokenness becomes beautiful when God’s love works within us. It is incredibly beautiful to look at a Christian, someone born again through Christ and realize that God made a broken and marred individual new and holy before Him. This truly is beauty in the brokenness.
I think we should challenge ourselves to look at brokenness in this light. To realize that God is above our brokenness and can heal our brokenness. The abandoned house I visited will never be lived in again. No sane builder would attempt to repair such a disaster scene. The best it can do is provide photographic opportunities for explorers like me. How incredible it is when we realize that in and of ourselves we are like this abandoned house. Yet, God still comes and sees us as valuable. He makes us new and makes a home within us. That is truly how there is beauty in the brokenness.
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9