Growth

The concrete hugged her stems and I wondered at her ability to grow in spite of a significant lack.  She did not have a lot of dirt into which to stretch her long roots, nor did she have the shelter of the sun on her petals.

Betweeen a crack in our sidewalk, against all odds, stands a flower.  Two actually.  They keep growing and flourishing and I don't know why she doesn't die.  

She is a hardy plant.  Alive.  Brave.  Different from all the others in the way she began life.

So it is with so many women, their beginnings looking bleak, their nourishment shallow and ragged.  But the sun shines in some of the darkest of places and roots can grow in the most unlikely depths.

The Fallen Redeemed

Exodus 32 tells the story of Aaron the Levite.  The fallen priest.

Truth be told, it is the fall of a nation.  But the Bible counts the fall to the detriment of their leader.  The chosen priest of a Most High God...fails.

He gives in to the plea of the people and creates an idol, an alter and stands by while God's people worship the heartless, powerless mass.

The pillar of smoke stands behind them as a reminder of the faithfulness of a God who protected them and brought them out of a land of slavery...bondage.  Yet there he stood. There they danced. And the Lord was grieved.

Moses interceded for the people and they were forgiven.

Again.

In Chapter 39, an amazing, unthinkable action was ordained.

"Of the blue, purple and scarlet thread they made garments of ministry, for ministering in the holy place, and made the holy garments for Aaron, as the Lord commanded Moses."(NKJV)

God takes the priest turned idol creator and clothes him with purple and gold.  The failure made into a prince.  The fallen made whole.  The complacent redeemed.

I walked through my home last week, counting my failures.  A child of God turned idol worshiper.  A complacent mother.  Fallen and unwhole.  I  wanted to write, but wondered what in the world I had to offer.  In my head, the words tumbled forth, shocking and raw: "Lord, no one wants to hear from a failure."  The Lord smiles upon me and I remember Aaron.

One moment He is collecting gold and melting them into an idol...watching His children fall and refusing to lead them.  The next moment, he is clothed in purple.  Redeemed.  Whole. Forgiven.  And not only do the people of God want to hear from Him, but God himself allows Him into the Holy Place...intercessor for the fallen.  God Himself meets Aaron the failure and hears his voice.

A picture of the Grace of a Holy God come down.

We lament.  We fail.  We create idols.  We mislead our children.  We cause believers to stumble.  We lead guilt-ridden lives.  The Lord comes down, clothes us in royal garments, and gives us access to the Holy Place.  We approach the Throne of Grace and receive it wholly.  Our messy ugliness is redeemed for the Glory of the One who makes all grace accessible.

The redemptive power of a Savior, manifest in the fallen.  It's His story.  It's always been His story.  Let it be ours.