”Lost & Broken - Part 2: Repaired” Advent Devotion for December 15, 2021

Lost & Broken - PART 2: REPAIRED

Written by --Barbara Nelson, Financial Secretary

Read by Bill Anciaux

At that time, I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home.

I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth

when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes, says the Lord.

--Zephaniah 3:20

 

 

I broke a necklace while I was wearing it. It was a silver adjustable necklace with a long dangling chain that hung down like a Y in front. At the end of this long chain was a tassel made up of smaller chains. I first noticed that the dangle had broken away from the necklace at St. Mary’s hospital, where I had taken my daughter for some tests. I showed her the broken necklace, and we searched around where we were sitting. After a few minutes, a lady came up to me and asked, “Is this what you were looking for?” Indeed, she hands me the dangle that she had found on the restroom floor. I was happy and grateful to have part of the necklace back. Unfortunately, the tassel of chains was nowhere to be found.

At that moment, we were called back for her procedure, so I didn’t get a chance to search any further. I forgot about it until we went to the car afterwards. As I opened the driver’s side door, something silver caught my eye. The tassel was on the floor of the car. Somehow, the necklace had broken into three parts, gotten lost in separate places, yet had all been reunited.

My necklace will never be the same. Some of the joining links were missing, but when I put it back together, I used stronger links that won’t pull apart so easily. The necklace may not be quite the same, but now, it is better able to endure further stresses on it. We are often like that broken necklace. When we are shattered into pieces by life and death and all that surrounds us in this heavy world, Jesus puts us back together, stronger, and better than we were before. He takes our pieces and gives us peace.

Jesus, we were not stable born, but You give us a stable new life. Through You, we can live, knowing that You are there to pick up the pieces and create new and better lives for us in You. Thank you. Amen