Cracked Not Shattered
By Justin March

There it was.  The sound that made my skin crawl.  As I exited
my car to head into the restaurant, my cell phone landed face first on the
parking lot asphalt.  The crack was loud, and even though it was dark, I
knew the damage was going to be extensive once I was able to see it.  So, I
picked up that phone, said a few choice words, and headed into the restaurant
fearing the worst.  And wouldn’t you know it, that screen looked like a
tarantula had sunk its’ fangs into it, been stepped on, and was left to have
his legs spread across its’ surface.  It was an ugly sight, and I must
admit I was pretty upset with what had just happened.

I worried about that phone during dinner, but there was nothing I could do
about it.  Once I got home, I took some time to really look at it and see how
extensive the damage truly was.  It did seem bad, but after further
investigation, I realized I had been lucky and it was just the screen protector
that cracked.  The phone was unharmed, underneath that shield, and I began
to realize that the surface damage was only going to be temporary and could be
fixed.  The phone was cracked, not shattered, and I began to feel much
better about the situation.

Cracked, not shattered.  As I looked again at this now imperfect phone, it
hit me that our lives can be a lot like this.  There are many things this
world will throw at us to crack our outer shells, but when we are protected
with God’s love and grace, it keeps us from being shattered.  We may be
left with scars, and we may not physically look the same after tragedy, but
when we have suited up with God’s armor, those flaming arrows find it
impossible to penetrate through.  We take a hit, yet we stand
strong.  We crack, but we do not shatter.  And when the tragedy
passes, we find ourselves walking with God and heading into greener pastures.

We cannot stop bad things from happening in life.  There will be
heartache, there will be sadness, and there will be loss.  But when we
take God’s hand, allow Him to guide us, and trust Him with everything, He always
lifts us back up and moves us forward on our journey.  The cracks can be
real, and the hits can truly hurt, but when we are equipped with God’s messages
and have that undying faith, it keeps our lives from being shattered.  And
before you know it, the storm has passed and the ugly surface has faded,
leaving only a bright, shiny new light that nothing in this world can ever
extinguish!