faithfulness and brokenness

I came across a Japanese blog which led me to the story of the repair of a cello (see it here). It is as scarred as my own if not even more. Look at the amount of new white wood being added to the underside of the top.

It's strange how things cascade in my life and as I deal, with the brokenness of the human body in the hospital, with the brokenness of the human mind and spirit, with those who have crossed my path in life this last few weeks, somehow my own struggles pale into insignificance before those of others.

Another theme in my recent thoughts is the virtue of fidelity, faithfulness. This word carries ideas of loyalty, commitment, and authenticity. I believe that being faithful is an essential attribute of God. God is faithful. Here is the nexus point for me. Without fidelity in relationship, as loyalty, commitment and authenticity the brokenness of human lives and the created order cannot be resolved. Whether on the transcendent scale in the redemption of humanity and creation itself, or the human to human relationships, without fidelity there is no hope and no reason to aspire. Humans will consistently fail in being faithful but grace allows us to return and return to God and each other and reach for faithfulness, to bring even a tiny bit of love in our leaky lives to each other.

If we are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself. 2 Timothy 2:13