Restored through tears…

Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation, and uphold me with Thy free Spirit. Psalm 51:12

The definition of ‘restore’ used as a verb is to bring back into existence or normal use. Bring back to former condition. Restore back to its original or normal condition. To bring back to state of health, soundness, and to give back by making sure all is returned back to proper working order.
I believe we can experience great ‘restoration’, just as Psalm 51:12 states God the Father has all power to restore us back to normalcy, peace, and return back to us what has been stolen. I have recalled often the scripture, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” Psalm 34:19. It would seem sometimes that the arrows of the enemy can often wound us and leave permanent damage that would seem somewhat irreversible. Life sometimes spins our lives into chaos, but the promise of being restored, outweighs any of those plans to destroy us.
I recently shared at a women’s conference about how we don’t always get to choose how life is going to go, things happen, people make decisions, we make choices. Often we are left holding the remnants of a life, looking to God for strength to once again find renewal and restoration.
I am always intrigued with the latest trend of furniture restoration. I have a dear friend in South Carolina who has bought and sold antique pieces for years. I have seen him take old, forgotten and forsaken pieces and restore them back to life, painstakingly cleaning, whittling, staining and repairing a beautiful table or dresser back to its original glory. Now, we have this nifty little thing called Chalk Paint, and what seemed like ready for the trash piece of furniture can now be cleaned up and fresh coat of paint and magically becomes fresh, new and shiny. The owner usually ads a new piece of hardware or some glitzy sparkly piece to give it a new purpose. I see God doing this in us. He loves to repair the broken, restore what’s lost. Woven throughout the Word are stories of restoration.

Maybe you are only needing a small renewal, perhaps your mind needs a healing, or maybe you are on a journey to complete restoration. You know that saying “I’ve been to Hadees and back”, my response always is… “Yes, me too! But! we didn’t stay, we are back.” Being restored is part of the promise of Salvation.. *”Therefore if ANY man be in Christ, he is a new creature.. Old things are passed, look, All things are new.”

We are restored by our pain or our tears. For some, that seems backwards. Why must I suffer to be restored? Why do I have to feel all of those feelings again? Why, do I need to face the people or the situations and bring it back up. It’s to painful, it’s in the past.. I don’t understand. Just like the piece of furniture, it often takes a re-working, a re-purposing if you will to bring us to full recovery of our brokenness, the sanding and the re-painting.. it is painful, but through the process it brings tears. But remember His word says “joy comes, in the morning.”

When counseling I often hear “I don’t want to cry, or I don’t want you to see me cry.” What is so amazing is how afraid we are to let the most natural and God given ability to heal us emotionally and physically, tears. Why are we so afraid to let the emotions pour, why do we struggle with being weak. He tells us, “when we are weak.. He is strong.”

Prayer.. Father, let my pain bring healing, let my tears renew me.  As I face the tough seasons, the difficult life situations, give me the Grace and Mercy to face anything with You as my Healer.