This week in Women’s Group they explored the ancient Japanese art of Kintsugi.  For those who haven’t heard of it, Wikipedia has a good summary:

Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending [and highlighting] the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold.

“As a philosophy, kintsugi is similar to the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, an embracing of the flawed or imperfect.”

In the Word 'a break' and 'being broken' mean(s) …suffering harm. This has its origin in the spiritual world, where all things without exception are joined together [according to the way in which the Lord’s truth is received].  (Swedenborg, Secrets of Heaven 9163)

In our recent grief series, we have been exploring how the Lord leads us through periods of change or loss - whatever the appearance.  I loved the image of our cracks being patched with gold (a symbol for love to the Lord and of the Lord’s love for us).  The idea that, with the Lord, nothing is wasted - that everything that happens in our lives holds the opportunity for spiritual growth (in terms of how we respond to it) has always been a tremendous comfort to me.  In fact, there’s a passage in the Writings which suggests that holding our trials this way is a key part of how we develop our relationship with the Lord - which is the reason the Lord’s Prayer is written the way it is:

If our temptation were terminated before running its full course our preparation for heaven would not be accomplished, and so we could not be saved.  …For the Lord desires the end in view, which is the person's salvation. The Lord knows that end, but the person does not, and the Lord does not do what prayers ask for if that is contrary to the end, which is salvation.

For in prayer, when inspired by God, there is always the thought and belief that the Lord alone knows whether what is sought would be beneficial or not. Therefore the one who prays leaves the Lord to decide whether to listen to what they ask for, then accordingly pleads that the Lord's will may be done, not their own, in keeping with the Lord's words uttered in Gethsemane during His severest temptation, Matt. 26:39, 42, 44.  (Swedenborg, Secrets of Heaven 8179)

May we keep our mind and heart open to the idea that the Lord knows our brokenness, loves us in it, and will patch our cracks as we are willing to begin giving our lives over to His care.

Love and Peace,

Ethan