Have you ever felt damaged? I mean beyond repair damaged?  So completely shattered that even if you found all the little tiny pieces and shards of your life there would be no possible way to piece them all together again and find enough super glue, epoxy, tape or plaster to hold it all together again? 

I saw this meme the other day that got me thinking and it kept rolling around in my head and this thought finally took hold and sprouted into a coherent thought today, so I thought I'd get it down on paper while it was still within my grasp. 

The meme states "Someday someone will hug you so tight that all of your broken pieces will stick back together" and we all go "awww" isn't that so sweet and really we all wish for that kind of love, that love that will seep down into our broken areas that will soothe and heal and complete us. 

Storybook romances are full of these types of stories.  Movies, music, media, chock full of that elusive 'someone' who will come in and sweep up all the garbage and fragmented pieces of our shattered brokenness and 'make it alright' and their warm hug will magically stick all our pieces back together. We think if we can just find that one person who will hold us tight enough, and long enough that we will be ok.  We will finally feel whole, our brokenness will go away, we will be able to take a full breath and not feel so shattered, so scattered, so rejected and torn up.

We go from person to person trying them on, hoping that the next one might fit the bill, that the next person will heal us and not damage our already broken mess and further shatter our shards so that all we have left is dust. We look into their eyes and plead for them to be the one.  I'm going to let you in on a secret..... they don't exist... at least not the way you think. 

There is one that does exist, and I found him.  He is faithful and true, gentle, kind and oh so so patient.  Once I finally was brave enough to truly allow him to, he swept into my life and found every single fragmented piece of my soul and spirit, places I didn't even think were broken. He now holds them all together.  Every day.  He is the only one who truly can.

Colossians 1

15The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

21Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of^g your evil behavior. 22But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— 23if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel.