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Broken Seashells

Devotional for Thursday, March 18, 2010

He has made everything beautiful in His time

– Ecclesiastes 3:11

It was last summer that I discovered I thoroughly enjoy snorkeling. Although I have spent my whole life around the gulf coast I had never taken the time to put on a mask, fins and snorkel and float head down and just look. Boy, was I amazed. Things were so clear. I could not believe everything I saw. Tiny schools of fish swimming around me, a few big fish staring at me, sand drifting in and out with the tide and my most favorite thing, seashells.

So many seashells. The colors, the shapes, and the textures were all so different. It was with great anticipation that I would submerge and reach for the one seashell that looked perfect. I would then be disappointed to find it was broken. My search continued for shells without any dings, scrapes and flaws. And with each swoop of my hand it seemed I was not going to find that flawless sand dollar.

It was in my floating that my mind went to wondering. I wondered what had happened to these shells? What wave had hit them that left them broken? What creature might have stepped on them? What storm might have tossed them about? And then I thought about how that relates to us and our journey. Our journey as believers. Have you ever been stepped on? What storms have you endured? Are you broken by unanticipated waves? Do you feel that someone is looking for you to be perfect or flawless?

But you know what? God isn’t wondering what is going on. He knows. He cares. He‘s sovereign. He does not want us perfect and definitely not self-sufficient. God tells us in Psalm 34:18, “He draws near to the brokenhearted." His Word tells us in Isaiah 53:5, “by His stripes we are healed“. In my weakness He is strong.

It was last week when a sweet and precious client of mine gave me a picture for my new office. The picture was a digital print she had taken of a heart on the beach that she and her daughter had created with sea shells; each with their own story. As I stared at this amazing heart , I saw clearly that broken things can come together to make something beautiful, something whole; a heart.

Do you need to be whole? Do you need, as Isaiah 61:1-3 says, "beauty from ashes?" We need to seek the heart of Christ to be restored. Trust Him today to design something beautiful out of your broken seashells.

Prayer:

God, you know our needs. You know the things that come against us and you know how we struggle with trusting you when our shells get broken. Help us to see the eternal picture you are painting when we only see what is in front of us. Give us a deep faith that you can make our hearts complete when we give you all the pieces. We love you and we need you. Amen

Rachael Croley