dailydatewithgod

Have you ever noticed that restored things are held in high regard?  We marvel at restored museum pieces, classic cars, family heirlooms, or even trends in fashion or language that make a comeback in culture. Why is it that we do not have the same reverence and regard for restored human beings?  People who have experienced trials in life or overcome a defeated way of living are not marveled for what they have overcome in body, mind, or spirit but are often kept at a distance.  Their restoration is not embraced but held behind the memory of the darkness they once were.  We struggle in our western culture with the idea of restorative justice.  We think more in terms of just completely ridding ourselves of the bad elements of our personalities or physicality instead of restoring the view in which they are held.  Perhaps these opportunities for restoration are invitations from God to see ourselves and the world as one big lesson in what works and what does not.  Without an opportunity for restoration of our hearts, we would never know how to get back to the truth of who we are.  If we know that restoration is possible we still have hope.  God never sees the light within us go out.  God never views us from the angle of our dark parts.  God’s eyes have a knack for seeing the restorative light that with his help can become our reality again. She wants us to know no matter how dark our sight of ourselves or others gets, there is nothing that cannot be restored to its fullness and wholeness.