Made Complete

In Him you have been made complete ~ Colossians 2:10

There is a story of an East European craftsman who makes vases.  He works with clay until the vase is paper-thin and without defect.  If there is even the slightest flaw, the vase is discarded and he starts over.  Once the vase has been fired, he delicately paints the inside.  When he has finished, the craftsman holds up the vase to admire it...and then he drops it into a metal box, where it smashes into a million tiny pieces (Standing Firm, Donna Partow).

For too many, that's how they feel their lives have gone.  That one day, without warning, the floor came out from beneath them.  And far too many think that's where they have to stay.  But when they do, they miss the best part of the story: Redemption!  This story doesn't end in a metal box because Christ didn't stay in a tomb.  He rose!  He set the captives free and healed the wounded and brokenhearted.

The craftsman doesn't leave the vase in the metal box.  He painstakingly glues each tiny piece back together.  All the broken places are now stronger than ever, but the vase isn't finished at this stage.  He works with pounded gold to make paint and covers over every spot of glue.  The vase, now complete, is more beautiful and stronger than ever before.

Jesus said that this life would throw us curve balls and try to defeat us, but in Him, we can have peace, for He has overcome the world, (John 16:33).  If you've been trapped in the metal box, call out to God who loves you unconditionally.  He longs to heal you in all your broken places, for in His love, we have been made complete.