He’s Doing a New Thing
by Kat Silverglate
“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?”
(Isaiah 43:19, ESV).
The restoration of an inner palace courtyard was underway in Portugal. Docents guided us from the lowest floor in a spiral pattern to the roof. The guide spoke eloquently about the rooms we passed, but nobody could look away from the work at the core. On their knees, the restorers washed away years of debris, one tile at a time. One restorer held a damaged tile like it was the most precious square of real estate on the planet.
What a magnificent image of God’s work in us.
Years ago, at a retreat a pastor guided us through the restoration of our most broken bits – things which seemed beyond repair. We remained silent, except for the woman sobbing to my right. She couldn’t hold back the dam breaking within. I put my arm around her, assuring her she wasn’t bothering anyone. We sat where we needed to be – safe, at the foot of the cross.
She whispered, “What do you do when you don’t know where to start?”
I whispered back, “Put your whole self in his hands. He’s the restorer of your soul. Let’s trust him.”
On cue, and without hearing our whispers, the pastor guided us. “If you don’t know where to start begin with the first thing the Lord puts on your heart. Give it to him. He saved you. He is the restorer of all broken things. One bit at a time. He’s making all things new.”
I can still remember the calm that came over the woman who’d just been crying. I can still remember the shift in my own heart as he brought my broken bits to the surface.
Often, I struggle to bring the pieces of my written work together. I’m surrounded by a community of writers who also wonder if their work is good enough, going anywhere or whether “this old thing” has any worth to the world. I can imagine the Lord taking our doubts and fears and washing them away, one writer at a time.
Lord, you take hold of and inspire each of us. You treat us like the most precious pieces of real estate on the planet. You are always doing a new thing at the core of our hearts where you so graciously dwell. Help us to recognize your voice and trust you at your word in restoring our brokenness. We love you Lord. Amen.
Kat Silverglate — lawyer, storyteller, preacher — has completed more than fourteen self-published works [image and word-driven, private and public] including her latest collaborative work for the International Association of Defense Counsel – One Hundred IADC Years — for which she won the 2019 President’s Award [initial release, 3,500 copies]. She is a member of Word Weavers Page 9 online group.