The Usefulness of Broken Things

Well, it's been another whirlwind of a week. Seth had several therapy evaulations and all went well and once we get Medicaid on board he will be getting services weekly. I've tried some of the techniques I learned from reading a new book and there has been a positive change in some of Seth's behavior! Praise the Lord for that!

On Tuesday we went down for Seth's Occupational Therapy evaluation. He went through several tests, lacing cards, cutting with scissors, folding paper, stacking blocks, (which he did perfectly! another victory because usually he just lines them up!) and drawing. As the Occupational Therapist was working with his drawing she kept giving him crayons, both whole crayons and broken ones. Seth didn't care he used them just the same. I thought it was odd, but was certain that this professional knew what she was doing so I just silently observed. After his evaulation she was reviewing the results with me and told me that his delays weren't too bad and that his fine motor skills appeared only a few months behind. She told me that she kept switching the crayons because somethings children will grasp the broken ones better because they are smaller and thus helping their fine motor skills with drawing. So she suggested that we get some crayons and have some broken ones as well as whole ones for him to use. Now that created a problem for me. If you know me well enough you know that I like things that aren't broken, things that are useful whole. But this therapist suggested I break perfectly good crayons.

So tonight we got a few things at Walmart to get some stuff set up for Seth and I bought a box to put the broken crayons in. I came home fixed his bulletin board and then got the crayons. As I sat there on the floor and I started breaking them, I kept thinking what a waste to take a perfectly good crayon and break it in half. But I also remembered the therapist telling me how smaller broken crayons would help Seth write better, so I broke them. Then it struck me. Doesn't God work the same way? Aren't we all broken? And once we are broken doesn't he find use and purpose for us, even in our broken state? Hmmmmmm what an idea. The God of the universe uses broken things to carry out His plan. Go figure. Then this same God sent his perfect whole son to our world, to live and then to be BROKEN for us so that one day we would be made whole again.

Now I can't go back and fix those crayons, but I know even in their broken state they will be useful. Do you think maybe we should try and look at ourselves in that way? In God's hand, our brokeness is useful to Him.