Not long before celebrating his eighth birthday a few weeks ago, my son asked me, “Mom, have you had a worst day of your life?” We were out kayaking on an overcast, yet calm afternoon and the question really caught me off guard. While I could think of several days that I would consider my worst, some incredibly recent and others not so much, there wasn’t really anything that was appropriate to share with his sweet innocent heart.

I paused to choose my words carefully and briefly answered, “Oh I’ve had some pretty bad days honey, but nothing that God hasn’t been able to make better.” As vague as the answer was, it was the truth…at least eventually. 

Now, if one of my good friends had asked me this same question, I would have responded much differently. I would have explained the great pain and heartache that I experienced within weeks of the birth of my son. The feelings of euphoria and superwoman power and energy during and shortly after my pregnancy, and then the debilitating crash in the aftermath.  I would have confided about the recollections of my psychiatric hospitalization and the long road of recovery that followed. While these are not the sort of memories I enjoy reminiscing about, I choose to share my story with others. Especially if I think it can help the person on the receiving end somehow. I truly believe there is power in my story. In every person’s story.

At a recent service, our pastor spoke about how God takes our broken lives and pieces them back together in a beautiful way. Just like the Japanese art of a broken vase fused back together with gold, the final product is more valuable than ever before. If there is something broken in your life right now, there is hope. Some day, some how, it can be restored and made beautiful again. And there is nothing He can’t work with. It may not look exactly as you had planned or imagined, but that doesn’t make the end result any less wonderful. 

Later in the day, as I proudly watched my growing son insist on carrying all the grocery bags in from the car, I reflected on how much has changed over the past 8 years. As much as we might not be able to see it in the moment, the worst days (or weeks, months, or even years) of our lives can be preparing and equipping us for something so much greater than we could ever imagine.

Stay hopeful friends. And don’t forget to reach out, and look up, during those worst days. We weren’t meant to do any of this alone.

Author: Elizabeth