My daughter can be a bit of a hoarder. She likes to keep everything. From the tiniest scraps of paper to sticks and rocks– and EVERYTHING in between. No joke. It’s mildly amusing. She finds value in the most seemingly insignificant (to me) things. Encouraging her to part with certain items doesn’t turn out well. I’ve often heard, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” I have found this to be true. Recently we set about cleaning her room (also known as the toy dungeon). We were sorting through things she wanted to keep, things to give away, and items to throw away because they were broken. Folks, the struggle is real. Convincing her to discard anything is like sitting a fat kid in front of a dessert bar with instructions not to touch anything [Who are we kidding? I’m not even sure I could control myself either—but I digress.] After dealing with the toy issue we moved on to items I thought wouldn’t cause nearly as much anguish. I begin rummaging through one area and found a multitude of broken crayons. I said, “Baby, I’m going to throw these away. If you need more I can just buy another box.” She quickly responded, “But I can still use the broken ones!” I poised myself to argue with her and stopped dead in my tracks. I felt the Holy Spirit say, “I use broken things too.” Whoa! I wasn’t expecting that. Honestly, I don’t think I heard another thing she said. My mind began spinning with what I sensed the Holy Spirit reminding me.
Psalm 51 finds King David pouring out his heart. He has found himself in a quandary. This Psalms is a record of his repentance because of the sin issues surrounding Bathsheba and Uriah. Long story short-David sins by being intimate with Bathsheba (the wife of someone else) who later realizes she’s pregnant with his child. In an attempt to cover his sin he calls for Uriah, who has been in battle, and commands he be intimate with his wife. Uriah will not do so as he’s committed to getting back to the battle (Uriah is unaware of what has transpired between the King David and his wife). David makes sure he’s placed on the front line and, as expected, Uriah is killed battle. He later gets called out for it and sets about making things right with God. He realizes what he has to do to repair the damage to his relationship with God. After repenting his tells God (vs. 13), “Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.” His desire is for something good to come from his mistake. Verse 17 states, “The [worthy] sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” I’ve come across many who feel guilt because of present or past sins. While I’m not encouraging anyone to purposefully sin, we must realize all hope is not lost when we fail. We are still valuable for kingdom purposes. God specializes in turning failures into testimonies. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” With God, there is always hope.
Final thoughts and encouragement: If you have fallen I encourage you to stop wallowing in pity or guilt. Simply confess, get back up, and keep pressing forward—and work hard not to repeat your wrongdoings. The devil takes joy in reminding us how broken and messed up we are. Thankfully, God uses broken stuff too! My friends, God has a mighty work for us all. Find your place and get to work! As I’ve heard it said-the next time the devil reminds you about your past or present, remind him of his future. He too will one day bow before the Creator of the universe. He’s already been defeated!