The Broken Toy

Almost every child has had a broken toy at some stage in their lives. Some of us perhaps even cried for one reason or another but, most of the time, we cried because of the loss of something we enjoyed, or that was precious to us because of how or why we received it. From a loving parent or a dear and special friend, that toy held meaning for us and would stay in our memories for a very long time. So, if it were broken, we would most likely want it repaired. Usually, a child would take it to their parent to fix. Daddy or mummy would inevitably do their very best to restore it. And if they could not, they might try to replace it. Whilst the child may be grateful, a replacement would never take the place of the original.

Imagine yourself as a broken toy. As one where events in your life have broken you. The losses that you have had. Friends who have let you down or turned on you. People who see themselves as superior to you; but you have no talent that they recognise because they don’t see you as having any value. Your expectations for yourself and your life. Dreams and wishes that never came to be. Achievements that have never been recognised or acknowledged.

I remember as a child having a teddy bear, I named him Teddy. He wasn’t very big and his fur was golden, and his eyes were fashioned from glass and he had a stitched-in mouth, pretty much like the bear in the Christopher Robin stories. I kept him for many years because he was so precious to me and I looked after him as best I could but, I never had anyone to repair him or replace the worn fur that developed over time. That didn’t make me love him any less, though. He was unique, and he was mine,

So how many times when we have a broken or worn-out toy that was beyond fixing, did we discard that toy, even throw it away? Usually, we would eventually do so, or even a parent may have made that decision for us.

Now, imagine yourself as one of God’s children who has been treated in a similar way. Broken and even worn down. Would the Lord disgard you? He never would! And, ask yourself this: because of the wonderful person that our Father is, how many times do you think that He will fix you? To bring you back to that place and position that you had reached and, to which you were born to be. What He created you to be. Just think on this for a moment: Whenever we are hurt or broken, does it concern the Lord? Does He sometimes cry over us, and perhaps, He cries over the loss of one of His children who goes astray or goes to a place where He cannot repair us anymore? No!

He will always continue to do His best to repair us and even make us stronger. In that we can place our doubtless faith! But! and there is always a “but”, isn’t there! we have an important part to play; and that is once we place ourselves into His care into His “repair shop”, if you will, we have to leave ourselves there and let Him complete that repair in you. Be aware that many times we don’t do that, and the attack on us can return because the healing or repair is not complete, not sealed against further attacks. It’s like having replaced a punctured tire and driving away without tightening all the wheel nuts. Eventually the wheel will come off, and the damage could be even greater.  The lessson here is that once you have given yourself over to the Lord, stay there with him. Dwell with Him. It is the essence of Salvation.

One of the biggest mistakes that most people make is the one of being impatient. Effectively, you go to the Lord, take the toy out of His hands to see if He has repaired it. But you will know when He has done this when he hands it back to you. You’re just being impatient! Think about this, if the toy was being glued as part of the repair, you could take it away so it that does not adhere properly and the repair is not as good as it could be. Or the repair has to start over, which is sometimes the case with things that we interfere with. So, in essence don’t interfere, keep out of it, and wait until “it” is handed back to you. Whatever that might be, including your health or some other kind of restoration. They say patience is a virtue, and in this instance, that is very true. God will carry out the repair and restore things the way that He had created. So (seriously,) step back and let Him complete His work for you.

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6)