building on brokenness

The houses that 'came down' today seem to be an apt metaphor for so much of life. We carefully construct our houses of cards, building our lives on carefully crafted assumptions about tomorrow. "We'll go here. We'll do this." And perhaps we shall. But there are times, as well, when things come crashing down because of what we didn't anticipate: illness, unemployment, family crisis, the children, divorce, the loss of a friend or loved one.

But the deconstruction is always only the precursor to the construction. That's a message that runs consistently throughout the Bible. After loss, recovery. After mourning, rejoicing. "Come let us return to the Lord. He has torn us, but He will heal us." Am I willing to turn to the God who tears, are who allows tearing, because of the faith and hope that healing will also come? This must be our hope. What will be built in the wake of loss? Our God would say - something better. The challenge, for so many of us, is to believe that, and to have the faith and courage to move toward that 'better' when the pain of being broken or torn is still real.