For Broken Lamps and Burned-Out Souls

This is my lamp.

I have it for two reasons.

Light...Beauty.

I only turn it on at night, when it's dark.

The rest of the time it sits idly in my living room. 

 I don't mind that it's idle.

I enjoy looking at it.

We inherited this pair of oriental lamps from Uncle Myles when he passed away.

There was just one thing about them,

one tiny little problem...

They were broken.

All in pieces.

So we gathered up the pieces and painstakingly glued them back together...piece by piece.

I don't mind the fact that my lamps have cracks running all through them;

that just makes them more precious to me.

Jesus said, "You are the light of the world."

Weren't we broken in pieces when He found us?

I know I was smashed to smithereens.

He glued us back together. Piece by piece.

Our flaws are beautiful to Him.

Do you really think that you must be 'on' 24/7 to please Him?

Must you have impossibly long 'to do' lists and be all things to all people?

Busy, busy busy,

Night and day.

You're burning out, my friend.

Maybe He wants you to sit.

Just be there for Him to look at.

Trusting that, when it is time, He'll turn on the power

and you will cast His light

upon those who need it.

But for now, could you just take a moment...

 15 minutes or a half an hour

just to 'be'?

Find a quiet little corner

where no one is around

and rest awhile.

Don't talk.

Don't eat.

Turn off the tv

 and the music

and the i-phone

and the nook

and the washing machine

and the computer...

Close your eyes and listen.

Then open your eyes and look around.

The world is still spinning

even though you are still.

It's all in His hands.

And so are you.

And you are beautiful to Him,

just sitting there.

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