One Man's Trash

The box arrived several years ago. The packaging neatly wrapped and topped with a red bow. Opening the box I found this delicate gift custom designed just for me. It was no toy, although it would be played with for the remainder of my life. This gift had one purpose. That purpose was to give me life. You see, this was a gift that we all receive from the moment we are born. This gift was my heart. 

Over the years my heart was shaped, broken, stepped on. It was bruised and calloused. Then, miraculously it was picked up by its original creator and washed using his own blood. The gift had been restored to its original beauty. Now it was up to me to keep it in good shape. So, the first thing I did was place it on a shelf so that no one could ever hurt it again. The only problem was that my gift would not be seen by anyone. Slightly under a quarter of a century later I took the gift down and entrusted it with another. This woman filled my heart as only she could. It was as if the creator knew what spaces existed and molded her to fit those spaces. Over the years she cared for my gift. She loved it and nurtured it. Within the first five years of holding my heart in her hand, this beautiful woman added to my heart. Now I had two ladies holding my heart. And my life was complete. They didn't pull it in two different directions but, together, continued to guide it toward its ultimate goal. 

Then it happened. My heart fell to the ground and there was no longer a space for my little joy. That part of my heart was damaged. Together my bride and I picked this gift up and dusted it off. Eventually I was able to display it again. Sure, it was still damaged, but if I turned the damaged part to the back, like a cheap Christmas tree, I could hide the hurt from everyone. For almost a decade I hid the damaged part. But My Love helped me shine the rest of the gift so that it distracted from any of the cracked area. 

Then it happened. My heart fell to the ground and broke into a thousand pieces. And all the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put it back together again. I tried bandaging it to hide the brokenness but the bandages were poorly applied and quickly soiled. I tried hiding the entire gift away from everyone but prying eyes would always spy it. So finally I threw the gift away. There was no sense in hanging onto it. It was damaged beyond repair. Nothing I tried would hold it together for more than a day or so. So my gift was tossed in the trash with the old newspapers and browning banana peels. Before long I had covered it with several days worth of trash. There were bottles that had long since seen a worm. There were piles of lint from the countless washing and drying of the cares of each day. Numerous other distractions covered the gift until it was finally time to take it to the curb. 

Then it happened. The creator of this gift saw where I had placed it. Looking through the Force Flex bag tied neatly with the red ribbon of plastic drawing the top closed He spied his creation. He asked me why I placed it there? I told Him that it was there because it was trash now. Broken beyond repair. He just reached and untied the restraints holding the trash bag closed. Reaching in He pulled the gift out and, with a tear in His eye, He turned to me and said, "but you threw it in the wrong bin." He stepped aside and revealed the green plastic container sitting next to the trash. "It goes in here." Gently he placed the gift in the recycle bin and, with a smile took the recycle bin to the curb. "My Father can use this. He has great plans for it." 

My gift will be returned to me again one day. It will be washed again and completely restored. There will be space for others in it. That space will be specifically designed for who He wants to fit there. You see, no matter how damaged the gift became it could still be melted down and reused. My gift is currently being repurposed for a higher calling. In the not too distant future this recycled gift will be used for the purpose for which it was originally designed. It will restore life to me and I will have it more abundantly. 

All too soon we are quick to throw away that which still has use. We feel there is no longer any reason to hang on to it and make the decision to move on. But the creator has a better plan. So, while we are tossing away something we feel is damaged beyond repair, He wants to restore it to its original purpose. We may waste the gift, but not the creator. Jesus? Well, Jesus doesn't waste. Jesus saves.