Hi everyone! I hope you're having a great weekend!! This week's video is a faith talk that I thought of on a walk around my neighborhood recently.
It's been snowing off and on in my area for the past few days, so the city has been putting down some salt and gravel on the roads to keep them from getting too icy. Have you ever noticed that when there's salt on the roads, the pavement turns white and suddenly you can see all of the cracks in the road? When I noticed this, it reminded me of something I learned in physics class last year (perhaps the only thing I remember from that class, lol) - sidewalks have built in gaps to keep them from cracking. If you pour the cement as one solid slab, then there's a higher chance that it'll crack under pressure from cold temperatures.
My next thought in this strange train of thoughts was "perhaps the salt on the road is like authenticity in our hearts". As soon as we're honest and authentic (heyyyooo word of the year!) with those around us, it brings out the cracks and sins of our past. This isn't a bad thing, but it's scary because it's scary to be real and vulnerable. However, it's essential! How can we truly be ourselves around others if we don't admit to mistakes and shortcomings? Once the salt has exposed our cracked pasts, then what do we do?
It definitely looks better to not have the salt, to not expose mistakes and sins. We might slip around on ice more often, but it'll look better from further away. A lot of people will temporarily seal up these cracks with fixes of this world. Have you ever noticed though that these seal don't last forever? Eventually you see the cracks again and are reminded of the past pressure and potholes. The only real way to remove the cracks and potholes from a road is to completely reseal it! That's the forgiveness of God! We can try to cover up our past mistakes and shortcomings with temporary seals of this world, like excuses and blame on others, but in the end - God's forgiveness is the only thing that can take away the cracks. God reseals our heart, allowing us to be honest about our past sins while still being forgiven and made anew in Him. How beautiful is that!!!
We can be honest with those around us about our pasts, while testifying to how we've grown and changed! That's not to say that it's not scary to be real about our pasts, but true "kindred spirits" (as Anne Shirley would say ;) will except us for both our pasts and futures. Your cracks can help others too! Your cracks could either expose others to their own, helping them to recognize the temporary seals they've tried that have failed, or your complete reseal could help them to start on their own complete reseal with God.
These cracks also reminded me of Amanda Gorman's heart-rendering speech at Joe Biden's Inauguration on Wednesday. She said:
"And yes we are far from polished.
Far from pristine.
But that doesn't mean we are
striving to form a union that is perfect.
We are striving to forge a union with purpose,
to compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and
conditions of man.
And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us,
but what stands before us.
We close the divide because we know, to put our future first,
we must first put our differences aside.
We lay down our arms
so we can reach out our arms
to one another."
I should really write a whole other blog post about how that poem affected me, haha, but for now I'll just focus on that part! Our life's circles, whether that be country, city, school, workplace, church, or otherwise, will be a better place if cracks are exposed and learned from. Your cracks may not be excepted by everyone, but those who do except them will help you make the world a better place. Once cracks are exposed and completely resealed by God, then we and those around us have the liberty to "put our future first". We are not "striving to form a union that is perfect," we are rather "striving to forge a union with purpose". A purpose-focused union/future has cracks! It's been resealed a few times. It's not perfect, but it's focused and authentic.
I hope this inspired, and maybe exposed you a little bit!! Be sure to check out the video for further explanation and enjoy! ❤️🙏
Episode 129: https://youtu.be/xe76-iGl9Xs
My Channel: (Edith Noble) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnXXLYRl1ImCPHpCqeFdilg
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