The nature of restoration...
I cannot help but smile every time I walk through my
Father’s woods and behold the beauty of His creation. In the quietness of God’s
creation is a voice that whispers the power and majesty of God’s will: in His
plan to bring restoration and redemption to all things. The sunbeams testify of
the light that will break through the darkness. The breeze brings a refreshing
that reminds me of a near Spirit that dwells within. The roots speak of being
rooted and grounded in His love. The colored leaves show the change in physical
season and also show the consistency of the cycle of changing seasons that
point to an Unchanging God who is constant through every season. Falls sets in,
leaves fall down, but the hope of a season of new life to come bring expectancy
through the long winter months. Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground
and dies, it will bear no fruit.
The leaves fall, making the branches appear
barren, but the beauty of the spring and grace in which restoration unfolds
will not be seen unless the bare branches endure through the orchestrated time.
In the midst of a broken world where tragedy cuts deep, pain pursues, and evil
engulfs, there is a Living Hope whose love speaks a better word. He speaks
mercy, mercy. He pursues the soul of every being made creatively and knit
together in His image. He sings songs of joy over His beloved and works to
redeem every injustice, because He longs to dwell with His creation and His
throne is founded upon justice and righteousness. There is love, joy, peace,
and righteousness in His kingdom. He ever lives to make intercession and He
will not rest until salvation comes, for He is the Mighty Redeemer: the one who
parted the Red Sea so His people could journey into freedom and pursue the
promise. He is the one who came from heaven to be called Immanuel: God with us.
He is the one who will split the sky and come again, making every wrong thing
right - because His heart is for restoration, redemption, and freedom.
His
heart is for love... to freely give love - even when He is crucified for it.
The deeper I journey onto the path of abolition, the more deeply my heart
rejoices because it sees the beauty of God’s relentless plan to bring forth
restoration from depravity. God’s restoration is powerful because it is divine
grace working through human weakness, for the glory of God to be made manifest
upon the earth, showcasing a picture of heaven and what His original intent
was: wholeness – perfect shalom – God dwelling with His people in perfect love,
joy, peace, and righteousness. His restoration cuts deeper than tragedy. His
joy turns the deepest sorrow around into a testimony of the living grace and
hope that is found through embracing the cross. His righteousness has power to
conquer evil and set captives free. And so we must continue to fix our eyes
upon Him who patiently endured the cross for the joy that was set before Him,
giving us an example to follow. The cross shows us the way to the beauty of
restoration. The cross shows us the way of perfect love. The cross shows us the
power that is found in submission to the Father’s will. His love is deeper and
stronger than anything else, and it reconciles us back to the Father, so we can
have the spirit of grace living on the inside of us, which works restoration
through our being.
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