“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:10
I once heard this verse referred to as architectural. Strong beams, placed to support the structure. (Just a quick summary.) When I am passenger on one of our long drives I like to look at all of the houses we pass, structures that present so different one from the next. Upkeep varies in presentation and some are sadly abandoned. I wonder who lives here? What is their life like? How do they spend their time? I’d like to stop and see but we are en-route wanting to arrive at our destination, no time. I think maybe someday we can travel through with no particular timeline and see what we find and whom we meet. Maybe buy an old house and restore it to it’s original glory. So intriguing a thought. I am sure I’m not alone in this thinking and many do that for a living.
Symbolic, isn’t that? All of what God says. In the garden Adam and Eve had it all and yet a fall from glory. And now, isn’t all our effort to be restored. I pray for restoration. Not for something pretty that may mislead there is a solid foundation, or the opposite where visual wear and tear assumes that the structure is weakened. But restoration in full reliance on God. Gone through the rework, made clean, found missing pieces to be whole and ultimately restored to original glory.
Metaphorically, too many hide in their pretty houses while others are dismissed because they do not fit an agenda. We can each rest on the surest foundation and be of mutual support to one another. Why pass by or overlook someone who is or was in your life? If you only view problems perhaps you need to look only to yourself. All can be restored by the God of Grace. We ALL fit with Jesus and have great value. He paid it all for you and for me. No rushing to build on our own terms when He is the Restorer, no danger there just firmly founded.
Just two girls in the woods for ONE!