By Matt
A few years ago there was an outbreak of posts floating around social media about the Japanese art of kintsugi¹. The process was one where broken pottery was repaired in a way that made the repairs obvious. Fine dust from precious metals was used in the repairs to make them stand out.
The common theme of these posts was to point out that the Japanese didn’t want to hide the flaws. By repairing them in an obvious way the artist celebrated the beauty and history those flaws added to ordinary household items.
These posts then go on to draw the parallel that we should celebrate the fact that God has healed us of our brokenness like we were shattered cups; that our flaws are part of our history, so the repair should be accentuated, not hidden.
In my experience this focuses us on the wrong part of the process. God doesn’t celebrate our flaws, he values our restoration.
The Japanese valued usefulness over all. The closest their ancestral religion comes to salvation is the belief that being purified returns you to usefulness.² While they may have been celebrating a cup’s history, the intention was to return the cup to daily use. Accentuating the repair was not the point. The point was restoration to the usefulness despite the damage.³
Being healed of your hurts is not the point; being restored to fruitfulness is.⁴
When we focus our attention on being healed of our hurts we can begin to think that healing is the point of our relationship with God, and not just one step in our restoration to original purpose. If we seek after healing but reject opportunities to be fruitful, we are missing the point.
“Being healed of your hurts is not the point…”
It is good to be healed. Healing is one of the perks in our relationship with God. But as good as it is to be healed, it is even better to be fruitful.
We need focus on returning to fruitfulness.
Right now you may be thinking, “That’s all well and good, but what does this mean to me now, when I am hurting and broken?”
It means we have two steps forward:
- Pray for healing.
- Get to work immediately at being fruitful while trusting God to heal you along the way.⁵
What would your life look like if you just started to take action and trusted God to heal you along the way?⁶ Instead of waiting for all your wounds to be healed, what if you reached out to others anyway? Instead of waiting for everything to be perfect, what if you chose to serve despite your flaws.
I know one thing. When I am busy at God’s purpose for me I don’t usually find myself busy worrying over my problems.
I’m going to go out today and be fruitful on purpose.
Matt@LocalChurchMovement.com
The japanese followed a mix of Shinto and Buddhism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinto
When we focus on the repairs and the value they add, it seems to me that we can begin to think that the vessel is unfit for the use it was designed. Either we think it is too valuable to be used for common purpose, or we think it too fragile. I have seen this in my own life and others, where I use my hurts, that I have been healed from, to justify not doing what I am made for. Either because I am afraid I will be re-hurt, or because I think I must have been created for something more.
In the kingdom we don’t use the term useful we use fruitful. Also: Luke 13: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+13%3A6-9&version=ESV
Fruitfulness is a broad subject for another post. The easiest way to get fruitful immediately is to go to your pastor and ask him to put you to work. The rest should come as you go. If you don’t have a pastor, find one and apply the above advice.
Knowing that faith requires action, I wonder how often we miss out on the healing because we are waiting to pursue our purpose until we get healed?
The japanese followed a mix of Shinto and Buddhism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinto
When we focus on the repairs and the value they add, it seems to me that we can begin to think that the vessel is unfit for the use it was designed. Either we think it is too valuable to be used for common purpose, or we think it too fragile. I have seen this in my own life and others, where I use my hurts, that I have been healed from, to justify not doing what I am made for. Either because I am afraid I will be re-hurt, or because I think I must have been created for something more.
In the kingdom we don’t use the term useful we use fruitful. Also: Luke 13: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+13%3A6-9&version=ESV
Fruitfulness is a broad subject for another post. The easiest way to get fruitful immediately is to go to your pastor and ask him to put you to work. The rest should come as you go. If you don’t have a pastor, find one and apply the above advice.
Knowing that faith requires action, I wonder how often we miss out on the healing because we are waiting to pursue our purpose until we get healed?