Things That Are Broken

I had to take my dog to the vet today to have his blood drawn. Since he started chemotherapy last week, we have to check his white count, among other things, to ensure that it doesn't dip too low. As I was driving home I got to thinking and praying about things and people I know who are broken; some broken by illness, some broken by shattered relationships, some broken by fear or bitterness or any number of other experiences. It is tempting to wax philosophic and surrender to the idea that this is just part of life and one can't dwell too long on such things for fear of being emotionally swamped. However, I kept remembering a verse in Isaiah. Actually, the Holy Spirit brought it to my remembrance, because Jesus said He would.  The verse is Isaiah 42:3. " A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth." I  thought about my friend who was given no hope by her surgeon after discovering cancer, and of my other friend whose sister is apparently dying of cancer and will leave behind an 11 yr old son. I thought about my mother who is suffering from Alzheimer's and of my father whose heart is frail and weak. I thought about how lonely he is and how he longs to share his sorrow with the woman he has been married to for well over 50 years, yet, he cannot because that woman is gone. Something else has taken over her mind and he feels as though he's living with a stranger; and not a very friendly one at that. I thought about so many other things that appear to me to be shattered and broken beyond earthly repair. And then I looked down at my dog's sweet face so full of trust and love and I almost lost it. My heart was crying out, "Oh, Lord, how can all of these things be mended? I know full well that some or all of them will not be. My faith is small and I just can't see!"
John Donne wrote once that nothing is lost that cannot be found and nothing is broken that cannot be mended. At least, I think it was him. At any rate, it occurs to me that we all live within the shadow of Genesis 3. We are all subject to the Fall and we live in a broken, frightening, fallen world. We all are fragile reeds that need redemption of one sort or another. And here is where the doctor's wife's life comes to the fore. My husband said to me as we were getting ready for bed last night, "I wish I could tell you about today. I wish I could unload on you, but I can't. It's too horrible." I thoughtlessly quipped, " Oh, come on! You can tell me anything." And he said, " If I tell you about it, I'll have to remember how bad the smell was." It was at this point that I realized there are some things I do not want to know. This fallen world is sometimes ugly and doesn't smell good or sweet. It can be anything but intoxicating to the senses.
Then it hit me. Jesus saw things like that and more. Jesus walked this earth healing the sick and dying. I learned this in Sunday School a gazillion years ago. Jesus went about healing the sick and doing good. In my Sunday School, 8 year old version of Jesus going about healing the sick and doing good, it never occurred to me that He encountered things like dirt and sweat and body odor and bad breath and stinking putrid stuff. He saw it all. And He didn't wince or turn away. He didn't throw up His hands and exclaim, "Enough!" He just went about mending what was broken. I believe He mended what was eternally broken, as well as what was temporally broken. Nothing is broken or shattered or lost when laid at the feet of Jesus. After all, He fashioned this creation which He came to mend and to redeem. He came for 11 year old boys and tiny babies and even the unborn. He mended old women and young men and all sorts of broken people who submitted themselves to Him; who cried out for the Son of David. To those who were dying He was/is the fragrance of life everlasting.
So, I came home this afternoon intending to do something else. But, I was compelled to find that Scripture verse in Isaiah about the broken reed and smoking flax. And I did. But, you know what? Across the open page is Isaiah 43. It's a wonderful chapter of prophecy about the Lord being the only redeemer. The first few verses bear repeating here. "But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior....Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honorable, and I have loved thee......"  If you feel broken or shattered today, or if you hurt for someone who is, know this. Jesus will not lose a single soul entrusted to Him. He will mend what is broken. He will blow the breath of life into what is smoldering in your heart. He promises in Isaiah 43: 13; " Yea, before the day was I am he; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall let [reverse; undo] it?" We can trust Him with all the impossibly broken things in life and rest in the fact that He will redeem that which is given to Him.