[This post is in a weekly devotional series called Everything New. Sign up here if you’re interested.]
When we relate the pieces of life back to God as source, and believe that the pieces are there for him and his purposes, we can see the sense in it all.
Regarding the human race, broken into so many pieces, Colossians 1:18-20 says: “[Christ] is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
When one head coordinates and directs a small human community, all the pieces of a new society and a new family-real human beings-should come together. And they do come together because Christ’s reconciliation, peace, and blood are real. At the moment of Jesus’ crucifixion, when it seemed as if the whole world were falling apart, when he who is good and right was resolutely rejected, then humiliated, then murdered, the reconstruction began. The earth shook and rocks split, and in the temple the curtain was torn from top to bottom in two pieces, signifying that the division between God and humanity was coming down, that a new way was opening for heaven to rejoin earth.
Are you looking to make repairs in your life, or to start some foundational construction? God helps us with both: putting pieces together, and putting pieces back together. One person attempts to fit together a brand new marriage in the process of courtship; another attempts to fix a broken marriage. Fit and fix. Pieces put together or pieces put back together. Someone in the first week on a new job tries to navigate new territory; someone else has been twenty years on the job and that same week attempts to repair something to avoid getting fired. A new believer reads the gospel of John for the first time, fitting Jesus’ statements there with other passages about Jesus; a long-time believer shuffles through well-worn pages, scanning for a passage that may build up a discouraged friend. A college freshman is confronted for the first time in philosophy class with the problem of evil; a policeman stands at the scene of a sniper shooting, shaking his head in disbelief.
Is there any question that we need a God who can put our lives back together?
What do you think?
Excerpt from Putting the Pieces Back Together: How Real Life and Real Faith Connect. Free DVD available now.
I agree that we are living in a time that the world is in great need of reformation, reconciliation and we need to come back to the Messange that is in the Cross and all Jesus done there for us. It is time that we stop trying to fix thing on our own. As human flesh we do not have it with-in ourselves to repair all that is broken in us and around us. Short of puting Jesus Christ first in our lives and walking after Him there is no other means of repairing all that is wrong in this world. Man wants to think he can do it with out God, that he dosen’t need God. When that couldn’t be futher from the truth. Everything man tries out side of Jesus and the Cross will fail. We have proof of that all around us and it is very visiable. Man keep coming up with ideas that look good sound good and may seem to work for a while but in the end everything that they have tried or will try still fails short of Jesus Christ and the Cross. It was on the Cross where all sin was paid for past, present and future. It was on the Cross where all our blessings are received. All sickness was cured rather we receive it in this life or the live to come. JESUS CHRIST IS THE ONLY ANSWER FOR ALL THE WORLDS ISSUES GREAT OR SMALL! Come to Jesus and repent and receive all the blessings that are waiting for you. And when the trials of life come at you, you can walk in the peace and joy of knowing that it shall pass and you will come out the victor and you will know that Satan is a lier and he is doomed to hell. Choose Jesus! Choose Life!
There never was a question that God was who I needed all along. I was just too prideful and arrogant to believe that I could get into Heaven by being a “nice” person. That all changed when I turned 40 and the Holy Spirit, with love I can’t fathom, showed me my need for a Saviour. I still have areas where I struggle to have the focus and discipline I need regarding different issues but knowing that God’s grace is sufficient is so overwhelming and keeps me in a place of humility and running to Him for the help I need. Thank you Lord!!!
ONLY GOD can put the pieces together once they are broken and this day and age many are broken.
Makes me feel Gratitude! Good stuff!
Hmmmm, OK
Thanks. more blessing (anointy) in Jesus name
That’s right, this world is a big & horrible mess & so am I. Without Christ in our lives to help us & guide us from day to day it would all end up very bad one day soon. It’s just a matter of time!
Sincerely, Patrick G.
There is no question..We all need God ..Its up to us to spread the word and up to God to use us to do his work..He will put His pieces together.. His picture is far bigger than us!! I agree with Mother Teresa; It all starts with God at home in the family and “Yesterday is gone, tomorrow has not yet come we only have today, let us begin” I see the word US… God the head is in charge..We the body have our work cut out for us!! Its all about Him…. Thats what I think anyway…
No doubt we need God, to put the pieces of our lives together, He is the potter and we but mere clay in his hands,with all that goes on in the world today and personal occurrences in our every day lives that only serve to confound us further,the only solution and hope one has is looking up to Him through which and in which all things were made.
I truly enjoy your write ups and find it very encouraging and also thought inspiring, may the good Lord continue to inspire, strenghten and enable you for the sake of the gospel.
All i can say is that there is enough message in the bible for as to read and use it for our daily life.
Trust in HIM, and with HIS help we WILL make this world a better place for everyone!! We just have to trust HIM. With trust comes hope, joy and LOVE. And with LOVE anything is possible, for GOD is LOVE, and nothing is impossible for GOD. And in Christ (Emmanuel) is God IS with us always, yes, until the end of time.
There is not a single moment that we do not need him in our lives, in our children’s lives, in our families, in our neighbours’ lives, in our friends’ lives and in the life of our community. We need him in our jobs and in our health. Our faith should start and end with him. We can be crushed but only He will put back our bits and pieces together to make us whole again. Amen.
HE is Jehovah Rapha and Jehovah Jireh. HE heals and provides.
Why is it that I feel that I’m a burden, because I’m lonely due to my handicap?
Putting things back together is so much harder than creating new. Sometimes things are so broken, they need to be put back on the wheel and have something new created. A new relationship to replace an old one can lead to mourning what was lost. We cannot recapture the past and nor should we try but we need to push on to the future with a new outlook at what can be gained and not at the past at what was lost. Sometimes we cannot put things back together, we just adjust to the new reality and let Jesus be the Lord of it.
I have absolutely no comments about the story itself, but a question; why don’t you write words like “he” an “his” and “him” when referring to God with capital letter?? it really bothers me to be honest. originally i’m from a dutch speaking country and everytime we refer to God, even when we talk to God we write that word e.g.”you”, “your”, “yours” with capital letter, but every time i read a story in english it’s not so… how come???