“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Eph 2:10 NLT)

I have always been fascinated by anything creative.

Art.
Music.
Architecture.
Movies.
Books.

And as one of God’s creations, I think it is inherent in all of us to look at His creation and be in wonder.

A sunset,
Pictures from the Hubble Space Telescope,
Coming over a hill while you’re driving through Colorado and seeing how beautiful the Rocky Mountains are.

With all of that beauty and splendor, it is surprising to me how easy it is for us to get stuck in the mire of life.

“We are gonna have to make cuts…sorry.”
“I’ve met someone else…”
“Somebody find Charlotte and get her on the phone… hurry, it’s about her son…at the hospital…”
“Come back in a week for the results of the tests…”

We are constantly inundated with the junk that is thrown at us in life. Some of the mess is our own doing and some of the mess is completely outside of our control. It is so easy for us to focus on it.

“Why don’t I have what I need?”
“I deserved that raise!”
“It’s not fair!”

I have found what defines me as a Christian isn’t how I respond to life when things are going well. What defines me as a Christian is how I’m doing when things are sideways. It’s easy to look at every situation and only find the negative…

It is always easier to destroy than create.

Looking at God’s creation, everything has an innate desire to create.

A spider creating a web,
a bird creating a nest,
a beaver creating a dam,
a mother and father creating a child,
a family creating a life together.
All these things point to every single thing having the distinct purpose…
to create something of purpose, somewhere.

So what do we do with all the brokenness, with all of the problems?
I am not trying to minimize what anyone is going through. We have no shortages of terrible things that can happen in this world.
But, where can we turn and see something better?

My cousin Joe, one of my favorite people on this planet, once said,
“When I look at a piece of pottery that fell, or is broken, it becomes more interesting. Those imperfections make it way more interesting than if it had stayed ‘perfect’.”
It has been almost 20 years and his words are still etched in my brain.

This is where we can turn to see something more…something made beautiful.

There is a Japanese art called Kintsugi, where the artisans fix and restore broken pottery with a special lacquer and they put gold, silver, or even platinum dust in it.

It. Looks. Amazing.

When I see the Kintsugi pottery, I can’t help but think that God does exactly the same style of artistry with us- even better. With our brokenness, with our fissures He is filling us with flecks, and facets, and particles of His hope, love, truth, light, and life.

Through whatever you might be experiencing in your life right now:
May you know that you are His masterpiece.
May you see the precious beauty of God’s hope filling your life.
And may you know that God has never abandoned us but has always brought the pieces together to make something vastly more interesting and beautiful in us. So that we, in turn, can see the value in all things and all people around us and create something beautiful with our lives.

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Eph 2:10 NLT)

-Josh

Go the extra mile: Check out the song “Broken Vessels (Amazing Grace)” by Hillsong. A perfect reminder of the love and grace that is all around us today and always.