Glue or Gold

Image taken from Internet.

    I read an article recently about Kintsugi.  I had never heard of it before reading this article.  It is a Japanese form or art, where they take cracked and broken pottery or glass, and ‘fix it’ with gold.  Instead of trying to hide the crack caused by brokenness, they enhance it with beautiful gold and also increase its value.  The pictures I saw of these pieces of pottery were just beautiful.  Here in our western culture we try to hide the cracks, and try to make a repaired or restored piece look like it did before, or as good as new.  But it’s not.  It’s gone through a breaking, and needs a restoration.  It has a history, and a new story needs to be told of it new restored beauty, it actually can be better than before, and more valuable when restored with the gold.

   God can also take our broken cracked lives, and repair it with his gold.  I love how the Passion translation renders 1 Peter 5:10 ““And then, after your brief suffering, the God of all loving grace, who has called you to share in his eternal glory in Christ, will personally and powerfully restore you and make you stronger than ever. Yes, he will set you firmly in place and build you up.”

  We all go through some kind of suffering in life, some caused by circumstance beyond our control, some by self infliction.  But no matter how it’s come, God’s grace (His divine influence in your life) can restore that suffering and brokenness and make it better than new.  Let His grace become the gold that puts you back together, a new piece with greater value, because you’ve let that which is broken become something of beauty.

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She Believed Retreat 2020

 

Here's our group shot from the She Believed Retreat in 2020

What a wonderful day it was.

Brandi Waples was our guest speaker

Do It Again

    Do it again!  Again!

How many of us have had a small child say that to us.  Read it again, play with me, again, push me on the swing again… Just do it again.

  We’ve done it before, we can do it again.  But often repetition becomes boredom.  What once was exciting, is now drool.  I’m doing this again?  What about those unpleasant things?  Again, and again they crop up in our lives.  Housework, dishes, laundry… do it again.  It’s not over, it’s never done. Do it again.  This is life.

   But what about the good things?  When love blossomed into romance, and you fell head over heels for your guy.  But now you look at this dirty socks on the bedroom floor, inches from the laundry basket but not inside it.  You begin to wonder what you ever saw in this messy man.  Do it again!  See what you first saw in him, do it again, love.

   The excitement when you first met the Lord.  You couldn’t wait to get to church or a Bible Study group.  It was all so uplifting, so life giving.  But somewhere along the line, it got boring.  The Word didn’t change, you did.  You quit seeing it for what it was, a life line, and began seeing it as a duty, a chore.  So now do it again!  Go back to your first love, and hang out with Jesus a little bit more.  Now it will be even sweeter, because now you’ve grown, and can love Him more maturely.

   Pray again!  Praise again!  Give again!  Love again!

  For all the agains in life… do it again!  It can be actually new and refreshing like the very first time.  Do it again!

James 5: 17-18

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

A Sunday's Widows Woes

  One of the hardest days of the week for me as a widow has been Sunday.  Now, I love the beginning of the day, when I get the opportunity to gather with other believers and worship Jesus.  It’s what happens after church that I never like.  I go home to an empty house, and most often spend the afternoon alone.  Now, in reality, it’s no different than any other day of the week, when I’m all alone.  But the loneliness on Sunday seems lonelier. If that that’s really possible.  Maybe it’s the memories of spending Sunday afternoons and evenings with the kids and hubby, that make it worse.  

     I often call my kids to see how their week has been, which probably drives them nuts.  I really am interested in their lives, and want to know how they’ve been, and what wonderful happening are going on in their lives.  But sometimes the call is just loneliness on my part, and I want to hear another voice.  Their lives on the other hand are anything but lonely, as they are busy with their own families and jobs.  

   Sometimes I try to fill my Sunday afternoon and evening with a ‘project’ of some kind, or some activity.  But well too often for me, it’s done alone again.  Kayaking, hiking, a yard project, some art endeavor, cleaning (that’s when I run out of fun stuff to do). 

    It’s hard sometimes, but important to do, and that’s put the Word of God into action.  “This is the day that the Lord has made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it.” Is true and needs to be acted on, even if you’re lonely and all alone.  Notice, it does say to rejoice in it.  Rejoice in what?  Rejoice in the day.  Even if it’s a lonely Sunday afternoon.  Rejoice!  Not for the loneliness, but rejoice that you have this day to be alive, and a loving Lord to be there with you.  Joy is not happiness.  Joy is something way deeper.  It’s something that within you because of Jesus, not your circumstances around you.  So even in the worst of days, you can still rejoice.  Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, “Rejoice!” 

So What is Unfolding Grace Ministry?

 

Unfolding Grace Ministry aka Kelley Reuer

Whether pastoring Alive Christian Fellowship, leading worship, hosting a Women's Retreat, preforming comedy skits and songs, or ministering to widows, writing or being a freelance photographer, Kelley does it with all her heart.  She's learned God is always walking with her through all stages and happenings in life, whether good or bad.  This blog is to share some of that journey with you.  

When Jesus Failed an Algebra Problem

     I remember those days of Algebra class in High School, with those awful word problems.  I was never good at them, I know they were suppose to be preparing me for real life scenarios  but I struggled to ever get them right.  I think Jesus did too.  He was presented this problem.  Five thousand men, plus women and children are hungry and have no food.  All that is available to feed them is five loaves of bread and two fish.  How many people can be fed? (Story found in Matthew14:15-21)

    Well, if you stretched it out maybe a handful could get a fish sandwich, and a few people could just have a slice of bread.  But Jesus takes it and gives thanks for it, and then breaks it.  He broke more than the bread.  He broke mathematical logic and patterns. His answer was; five loaves and two fish can feed five thousand men plus the women and children (lets say a few thousand more) plus have leftovers of twelve baskets full.    On the Algebra test, he would have gotten it wrong, but in real life, he got it right.  God is always the God of enough and extra.  In 

II Corinthians 9:8 (CEV) it says, "God can bless you with everything you need, and you will always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others." 

    The test giver must have felt Jesus needed a second try at this mathematical problem, because a short time later (Matthew 15:32-39) a little bit smaller crowd needed to be fed. This time there was four thousand men plus the women and children and they had a little bit more food to serve.  They had seven loaves of bread a few fish.  How many can it feed?  Again Jesus broke the rules, and it fed everyone, and all were satisfied and had their fill.  I've known a few people in life, that it takes more than a small piece of bread to have their appetite satisfied.  I'm sure there was a few in this crowd.  But they  were all satisfied, they all had enough, and they even had seven large baskets full of left overs.

  God is not El Cheapo, or El Stingy.  He is the God that is more than enough, in Hebrew  El Shaddai.  He's the God of enough and extra.