Repurposed or Restored?
It’s rare when someone offers you a grand piano for free, but when a friend told me a local church was freely offering a grand piano, I jumped on it. Now I just had to find some friends who liked me enough to help me get it into my truck.
I enjoy playing the piano, but this piano was not suitable for playing. That’s why the church was looking for someone to take it. The sound board—that big honkin’ piece of spruce inside the piano—has developed issues and the piano would not stay in tune.
However, I still saw potential for this piano, so I removed that pesky soundboard … then I remove the cast iron and the strings. I removed the legs, turned it on its side, and converted it into a bookcase.
I enjoy taking something old and of little value and giving it new life. To this point, I’ve done this with two other pianos, two trumpets, two guitars, two clarinets—and I’ve got a flute waiting its turn. It’s fun to see something gain a second life. The clarinet may no longer sound good, but it can light up a room. (It’s good to have on while listening to light jazz.)
Jesus doesn’t “repurpose” us; He restores us to what we were created to be. When I first got an old, sad trumpet, I don’t think Louie Armstrong could’ve made it sound good. He’d probably come off sounding like a 6th grade beginner. My only option was to convert it to something different.
Not so with Jesus. We are broken. We’ve ruined our lives with sin. Even on our best days, we’re still corrupt.
“All of us have become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment” (Isa. 64:6).
That was never God’s intention for us. We were created to live in a pure, sin-free, intimate relationship with the One who loves us deeply. But when we marred His original plan and design, God didn’t settle for working with what was left and crafting us into something less. On the cross, Jesus totally removed our sin. He didn’t mask it; He removed it. And then He gave us a new life. Freed. Forgiven. Restored.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17).
I like my piano bookcase. But I would enjoy this piano far more if it was played, making the music it was first created to make. And you were created for something far more than what you’ve made of yourself. It’s truly beautiful music when God through Christ fully restores you.
“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while” (1 Pet. 5:10).
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This post supports the study “Jesus Restored My Life” in Bible Studies for Life and YOU.
Podcast
Join Lynn Pryor and Chris Johnson as they discuss this topic:
https://ministrysites.s3.amazonaws.com/podcasts/bsfl_adults/BSFL_ADULTS_SPR23_U1S2.mp3
