What can I say this year started off pretty rough. When I thought life couldn’t get anymore difficult a chainsaw of destruction came in and tore into the fabric of our beings. Any resemblance of normal has long blown out the window of a house left in ruins. Sifting through the debris of what is left I find tarnished and broken fragments of things once deeply treasured. I gather them up and carefully place them in a bag for safe keeping. I hand my kids each a bag and a broom as we sweep through our broken dreams and gather our crushed hopes into the trash. Anything worth salvaging is carefully and tenderly set aside. We tirelessly continue to work until our minds and bodies are sore from clearing all the rubble of despair from the foundation of our home. There is a glimmer of hope that catches our eyes when see the foundation is still intact. With that we know we can build…

I wanted nothing more than to protect my kids from the harsh realities of the life I lived. I managed our lives so carefully. I measure my words and actions so intently around them. I am protective and keenly aware of wolves set on destruction. The onlooker will casually conclude that I invited the culprit in and coddled it by my apparent “rebellion” towards the establishment. But much to my dismay evil lurked within the walls of my safe harbor long before my own failures. This evil lay dormant for years and I was completely unaware of its presence and unable to do anything to stop it.

Picking up the pieces of what is left I am surprised at all that was salvaged. The core values of who we are to each other and who we are in God remain solidly inter-grained in the foundation. I wish that meant that we wouldn’t have our set backs and challenges but I have hope that this new house under construction will be a place of refuge. We won’t be able to ignore the scars that were left behind but we won’t allow them to make us inferior. We’ll use them as a fuel and a drive to excel despite their presence. This will become but a light affliction compared to the Glory that is to come.