“Let me help you!”
My daughter yelled out the door amidst the chaos.
It was late in the evening and here we were, outside in freezing temperatures inspecting our busted pipe. Flashlight in hand, trying to figure out what to do next, I wondered, how did this happen? We let the water drip to prevent this.
Water was everywhere, shooting out of the pipe. My husband took immediate action, turned off the water and tried to determine what the problem was. Turns out, the pipe to the water spicket wasn’t covered like the rest, making it more susceptible to break. Luckily that was the only busted pipe. After an hour of being stressed, he figured out how to stop the leak temporarily, while I gave our daughter random tasks to make her feel like she was helping 
– crisis averted!
When we discovered the problem, immediate action was needed to minimize the damage and restore working conditions.
Have you ever gone through something that you knew you had to address right away, or it would end in disaster? Like you couldn’t wait till morning – it had to be now!
Whenever I read about the Israelites in the Bible making mistakes and forgetting about the God who saved them, I feel like my daughter when she yelled out the door,
“Let me help!”
Because couldn’t they see they needed to do something quick to avoid their own destruction?!
But then I take a step back and realize, oh yea, I’ve been there too.
I love the book of Jeremiah because it contains prophecies of hope and restoration for Israel- despite their past unfaithfulness.
They found grace out in the desert, these people who survived the killing. Israel, out looking for a place to rest, met God out looking for them! God told them, “I’ve never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love, and more love! And so now I’ll start over with you and build you up again. Jeremiah 31:2-4 (MSG)
I think about my marriage and the restoration that has taken place. How we took immediate action and did the work to repair what was busted. How God met us in our own desert place and restored what was broken.
Leave it to God to remind me of my own restoration by using our stressful pipe scenario.
And that’s just like him though.
He gives you unexpected peace and hope when times are difficult.
I heard something at church this week that stuck with me,
“You and your spouse could not dig a pit so deep that Jesus could not rescue you out of.” -Josh McPherson.
If you haven’t experienced restoration, I want you to know- Nothing is too far from God that can’t be restored. Whatever you are going through, do not give up! I know God is out looking for you right now.
Maybe you need to give up on your temporary solution and let HIM be the permanent one.
