Cracked pots and wilted flowers

I walked into the flower shop carrying the pottery vase with its large cracks on either side. Placing the vase on the counter, I waited patiently for Rosie to finish her phone conversation.

"Rosie, I want you to use this vase and make a beautiful arrangement for me. My only request is that you select flowers that you would not normally use." I smiled at her confusion.

"What do you mean?" she inquired.

"I want you to choose flowers that are flawed, ones that you would normally throw away... Oh, and I do plan to pay for them, I'm not looking for something free." Her puzzled look told me that further explanation was necessary.

"The flower arrangement is to be a visual representation of the God who loves us."

"You see this vase? It is evident, looking at the pot, that it certainly collapsed sometime during the curing process, resulting in the two large tears on either side.  Most of us would have been inclined to toss the pot aside and start over. However, the potter did not. He chose to take the flaws and work them into his creation."

"I want you to do the same with your creation. Take that which would normally be discarded and make it beautiful... imperfect, but beautiful."

Rosie, an artist who is determined to give only her very best, reluctantly agreed to my request. I left her to ponder the challenge, anxious to see what she might create for me. 

When I returned several hours later, Rosie presented me with her offering. Many would notice where she had trimmed away dead leaves and petals from some flowers and had sculpted others with just a small trim around the edges.  Some would find the wire and glue where she had mended some of the stems and petals. All would see the beauty.

Looking at the arrangement, which is sitting on my table, I reflect upon the God who inspired me to request such a creation. He is a God who will take me just as I am, flaws and all. In His gentle hands, He takes me and molds me. He shapes me into something beautiful. He uses my flaws and weaknesses and melds them, with His strength, into something beautiful.