Jagged Edges

They are broken and they hurt.

Sound familiar?  

One of my most beloved past times when recharging at our favorite vacation destination is walking on unblemished sand during the early (sort of) hours of the morning.  My eyes soak in the first beams of light dappling off the smoothness of the sea as the birds swoop searching for their next meal.  One can find lots of treasures as the waves crash and break, washing only God knows what to the shore.  Oftentimes, wedged in the rocks will be broken glass.  Different colors, different shapes, once upon a time for different purposes. 

But now broken.

Picture this: Jesus walking down the beach observing the grandeur of His creation.  He stops.  Sun beams spotlight an object, green or purple or pink or red or blue, you pick. . .He bends down and catches it in His grasp, carefully turning it over and over again in those beautiful nail-scarred life giving hands.  A glimmer of a smile flickers across his face as He looks out over the vast sea.  "Magnificent," He whispers.  He slips the piece into His cloak, sheltering it so to speak. . .but He isn't finished with His find yet. . .

What happens to the these jagged edges when they are recycled?  I'm going to simplify this because I'm a simple girl.  The impurities are removed and the glass is refined by fire. 

Okay, where am I going with this?  Here's where I am; not sure where I'll go with it...

1) That glass is one of a kind.  Once broken and washed up on the shore, the texture, color and shape brand it as unique.  Everyone has a story.  Every story is different.  Every story has a purpose.
2) It doesn't matter where it was washed up, whether it be on this side of the globe or the other; Jesus made it all.  He can refine it all.  Every story will begin and end with Him.
3)The power of the wave and the power of the flame.  Both forces are to be reckoned with.   Trials shape us.  Refinement readies us.  

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