Silk flags. The lightness, shimmer and beauty of silk, a much desired quality, but yet, imperfect. The most perfect time is when it is where it belongs, on a silk cocoon, yet the moment someone takes it from the cocoon, to be weaved into silk, imperfections from the nature of a natural silk thread is weaved into the fabric. Little kinks, spots where the thicknesss of the silk thread is uneven. The moment another artist takes it, to be stretched with pins onto a frame and dyes it, it leaves marks and little holes on the silk. The moment someone else takes it and sews into a flag, the action of the needle piercing into the fabric causes the weave to move, causing even more imperfection.
Isn’t this a reflection of our lives? Each of us imperfect as we are, walking through life, hitting against walls, rubbing against other people, falling down, bruising our knees, getting up again, going through challenging times, ups and downs, tears, heartaches, heartbreaks. Coming back time and again to the Master’s hand saying, here’s my broken heart, I have nothing much to offer, but I offer my life to You, please would You come and make me whole.
The master takes a look at our lives, instead of taking out all the imperfections and the pain, He pours in gold to fill all the cracks. Celebrating our imperfections, He fills our precious scars by filling it with His divine perfection. Like a Kintsugi* pottery, He celebrates us.
I have wondered for a long time, why our precious Saviour Jesus, did not take on a new perfect body when He resurrected from the dead. He bears the scars of His ultimate sacrifice for eternity. Yes, forever and ever and ever. Why would a perfect God be willing to wear for eternity the scars on His hands and feet and His sides? Perhaps because He is showing us, that there is beauty in our perceived imperfections, there is beauty in our scars.
As you flag your silk flags, as gradually they become worn and the silk thread starts to fray, remember, the only one that sees the imperfections is you, and that is because you examine it very very closely. Because as you wave those flags, people looking at it only sees the beauty of the color, the movement and the shimmer. They do not look for imperfections.
As you dance, even if you do not have the perfect dancer’s body, or for that matter, an aging one, or a slightly overweight one, or a too skinny one, know that God doesn’t see your imperfections. Instead, He only sees the beauty and the uniqueness He created in you. Be blessed. * Kintsugi - the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold.
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