Light Through the Cracks

And we think cracks are a bad thing.  Hmmm.

Consider this – Light gets in through the cracks.  It shines through.  We can’t keep it out.

Are you cracked?  Are you broken in places you’d rather not mention?

Perhaps it is time to let the light of God’s love and grace seep in through the breaks and

cracks and flood your heart and life with his good news.  You would be amazed at how God would choose to use your life with its cracks and flaws.

It seems to me that God loves to use imperfect people.

   ~David was an adulterer

   ~Rahab was a harlot

   ~Saul/Paul was a human rights abuser

   ~Peter was a traitor

   ~Jonah was a runaway

These prodigals became mentionable men and women of the faith and God used them, cracks and flaws and all.

Grace shows up best in our imperfections. The light of God’s grace gets in through our cracks.

Though he probably didn’t intend this lyric as a spiritual reflection, I think Leonard Cohen makes a nice contribution to our thought.   Ring the bells that still can ring.

   Forget your perfect offering.

   There is a crack in everything.

   That’s how the light gets in.

I love what Brennan Manning says about this:

God has a history of using

the insignificant to accomplish

the impossible.

~Brennan Manning

And God wants to use you and me in these days.  It becomes an act of surrender.  We surrender our past, present and future.  We surrender the good and bad in our lives. 

I remember an illustration I heard once when I was a small boy.  The story goes like this:

One sunny June Sunday, in a small church in Tennessee, there sat a Dad, a Mom and a seven-year-old boy.  When it came time for the offering to be received, the ushers walked down, got the offering plates, a prayer was prayed and they then proceeded to pass the offering plates up and down the aisles.

Our small friend was watching intently as this went on.  When the ushers reached the back of the church, they again came down the aisle to the front and were just about to place the offering on the communion table.

Our friend darted out into the aisle and ran down to the front of the church.  He approached one of the ushers and said, “Lower please.”

The usher was puzzled for a moment and then held the offering plate about waist high.

Our young friend said, “lower please.” 

The usher lowered the plate to knee level.  He assumed the boy wanted a better look.

“Lower please” came the request, one more time.

This time the usher placed the offering plate on the floor.

Our seven-year-old stepped into the plate amidst the money and coins and envelopes and said, “I don’t have any money to give to Jesus, but I give myself.”

That is it!  We are available for God to use, cracks, flaws, age limitations, skin color, and any other disclaimer we choose to offer.

Even with our imperfections, God’s light can get through.

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