The Broken Bells

My wife had a collection of bells when we got married. They were beautiful bells made of glass or porcelain. When we bought our first house, we displayed her bell collection in the living room on a shelf hanging on the wall. They remained there for a while until they were not. The reason they were not hanging there anymore was that something was on the floor below the shelf. When I stood after retrieving the object, I hit the display on one side, and all of the bells slid onto the floor. Hundreds of broken pieces intermingled with each other in a way that we could not repair any of them. We swept them up and threw the bits away. It was an unfortunate event, but accidents happen.

Sometimes things are so broken that they do not seem fixable. Situations, friendships, and marriages can get out of control. We plan and adjust, but we find no remedy. Things can happen that are not part of our plans. We look at the big picture of things and see what looks impossible deciding to throw it all away.

As I rewind things in my head, I realize there are reasons I could not fix those bells. The same reason those impossible situations get tossed aside. It is a lack of patience or willingness to try. Gathering and dividing the hundreds of pieces for each bell would take an enormous amount of time. Using the correct amount of glue on every chip and crack without making a mess takes a skill that I undoubtedly do not possess. Touching up any paint with the exact shade to bring it back to its original condition is best left to someone who knows the difference between maroon and burgundy.

To me, the task of repairing them is overwhelming. However, some people fix things that seem not to be reparable. They are extremely patient. They have steady hands. They have experience and knowledge. They are extremely expensive, as well. Someone can fix anything if they are willing to take the time. How would those bells be brought back to life as a collectible? One small piece at a time. You cannot rush the process. Just like a broken relationship, it may take years to fix, but it would be worth the effort. The problem is we do not want to take the time. It is so much easier to toss things aside regardless of the cost.

I discovered something else in my life. You cannot fix something that is not broken. No one could reassemble the pieces if they were not separated.  They could be changed, maybe even improved, but not fixed. I have never brought my car to the shop and said fix it without something being wrong.

I do not know anyone who does not have something broken in their life. People have broken minds, emotions, spirits, and bodies. We all need repair in some part of our lives. Even those that seem to have it all together have something wrong. Some hide those areas very well. We need to quit hiding those things and begin to take the time to mend them. It takes time, patience, and willingness. Sometimes healing wounds are painful, so we ignore them. We learn to live with the pain. If we just pressed through, restoration can take place.

Sometimes we do not know where to go for help. We do not know who to trust. There is only one that I can genuinely depend on and know can restore. That is God himself.  Two things I know about God: He loves you, and he can do anything. He has proved those to me over and over again. Go to him. He is willing to help if you are willing to trust him.

1 Peter 5:7 (NIV) "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."

It’s nothing like the good old days.

My dishwasher decided that it no longer wanted to drain. I followed the steps that I read about to see if something was clogged. I cleaned out the tubing and filter, but the water refused to drain. Rather than fight with it any longer or replace parts that would have cost almost as much as a new dishwasher, my wife and I decided to purchase a new one.

This dishwasher came with the house that we bought eleven years ago. I do not know how old the appliance was at that time. What I do know is that people, of course, say the same thing every time something breaks. “They don’t make them like they used to.” They also don’t make them as inexpensive now.

I see a lot of posts from older folks, many of whom are my age, remembering the good old days. They show pictures of devices that today’s younger generation has not seen.  I recognize more of these devices than I care to admit.

I remember our first VCR, metal ice trays, having only five channels, and our first video game (Pong). Reminiscing about the good old days brings back some great memories.

Today is not like the good old days. We no longer have 8-track tapes. We have music that we download or stream. We seldom write checks or pay cash anymore. Most pay for their goods and services with debit or credit cards. We no longer have to defrost our freezers like we used to do.

It is fun to think about the good old days. However, we cannot live in the past. We must move forward.

The old days had their problems, as well. In 1950, the life expectancy was only 68. Today, the average American lives until 79. In 1900, only 2% of homes had electricity. Today, it is rare to hear of someone without it. The mortality rate of newborns in the U.S. dropped from 58 per 1,000 to only 6.15 per 1,000 between 1933 and 2010.

Today has problems of its own. We have tools, such as the Internet, from which we can learn many things. The problem is there is also a lot of misinformation that we tend to believe. We have social media which can be used to reunite friends, but it is often used to conquer and divide. We have hundreds of channels of television to watch, but most are not uplifting to watch.

 

Past, present, and future all have good and bad things about them.  Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (NIV)

There will always be things that can bring us together. The problem is the heart gets in the way. We would rather be right than lose a fight. We would preferably rule over others than humble ourselves or encourage each other. The problem is not the technology or the changing of times. The problem we confront is and always has been a heart problem. We all look too much at ourselves but love each other too little.

The future is coming, and these will become the good old days. Let us learn from our mistakes. Let us appreciate what God has given us as well as how far he has taken us. Let us continue to grow, not just in technology, but as loving, caring, and humble people who will choose to make tomorrow even better.  

The Scars of a Warrior

I watched warriors on the screen battling out with swords and spears. The intimidating champion comes out to the battlefield with a massive scar across his face and many others across his body. The warrior made me wonder how many fighters in movies seem to have physical flaws to be intimidating.

Doing a quick internet search to find out, I came across an article published by JAMA Dermatology in 2017. The report was about the physical characteristics of movie villains.  They found that six of the top ten villains had some physical defect. Most villains had scars, warts, deep wrinkles, dark circles under the eyes, a bulbous nose, or other types of what are considered defects.

The reason this fascinated me is simple. Those characters are intimidating when confronted. Why is it so intimidating when an opponent’s physically scarred champion faces someone on the battlefield? I think the answer is simple. He survived the other attacks.

I like to read about David’s mighty men. Few of us could fathom ourselves doing the exploits of these men. Josheb-Basshebeth killed eight hundred men in one battle. When the rest of his army retreated, Eleazar stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord gave him the victory. These men are just two examples of the warriors listed with David in 2 Samuel 23.

We like to think of our warriors as strong and undefeated. However, this is rarely the case.

Those intimidating scars did not come from winning every battle. The warrior may have won the war, but somewhere along the line, a weapon struck him or her. The physical scars remain for all to see. It reminds us of the previous, but it also tells us that we are overcomers. We did not die from the weapons used against us. We prevailed. We can look at our scars and say the Lord delivered us. We can live to fight another day.

Not all scars are physical, however. David’s mighty men probably had a few physical injuries, but no one could see most of their wounds. These men most likely met David at the Cave of Adullam mentioned in 1 Samuel 22. “In addition, every man who was desperate, in debt, or discontented rallied around him, and he became their leader. About 400 men were with him.”

Many wounds are emotional, spiritual, or mental. When you overcome these areas, like David’s mighty men, can see that you have faced a battle. They do not know what you have defeated. Only you know how each situation turned out. Emotional, spiritual, or mental scars are for your knowledge only. They should be no less a reminder to you of how you survived the battle to fight another day.

Do not look at your wounds and think you lost. Look at them and know you overcame them. The injury did not kill you. It cannot stop you from moving forward. The only thing that can stop you is you. If the enemy can get you to think you cannot win, he will. Rather than allowing this to happen, put your faith in God, who gives you the strength to carry on.

Regardless of what has injured you, live to fight another day. Be the warrior you were meant to be.