Whole

Once again, glass and faith are juxtaposed for me. This morning, I was reading Ephesians 1:4. I often read scripture in more than one version to give me a fuller meaning. Today I was taken by The Message. It said, "Long before he laid down earth's foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love."

ME??  Whole? Holy?

Really?

I prayed, "Please God, fulfill your promises. Make me whole. Make me holy." Before I even got to the last sentence, I sensed God laughing with joy, "I already DID!" I was stunned. For much of my life, I have viewed myself as damaged, injured, broken. Not that I felt sorry for myself, but that I just wasn't quite all right.

I examined my self, and sure enough, I was whole! Not in an instant, but over many years, those wounds have healed entirely: My birth father's abandonment. His abuse. The difficulties in raising my son. My first marriage's explosive end, revealing years of deceit. My second marriage's failure.

None of it defines me anymore. It is true, and it is present, but I am defined by God's love, not my (and others') failures. Wow! What a realization! And what joy there is in being whole! I've known that joy had found me, but I hadn't redefined myself as Whole.

In glass work, there is a stage when the pieces are all cut and ready to be made whole. I am at that stage in the creation of "Every Feather: Green" right now. There are around 150 intricate pieces that are sitting on my table right now, waiting for me to fit them together like a puzzle, with lead came between the pieces. Then I'll solder and glaze the piece, making it whole.

This will be my third "Every Feather" piece, and I'm getting better at it. But this very small accomplishment is nothing compared to the work the Father does in us, making us whole. However, I know that this time, I'll be thinking about how God has made me whole without me even realizing He was doing it!

Every Feather: Blue

Every Feather

Wow!
What Love.
What Grace.
Thank You, God!