In Kansas City, one of the more popular events each month is known as First Fridays. In the West Bottoms (Kansas City’s old meat packing district), a series of buildings have been turned into stores. These aren’t just any hipster stores. These are stores consisting of reused, repurposed or restored items. You can find any number of items in these stores – furniture, decor, clothing, art and more.
Each store is made up of a number of different “booths”. The booths are operated by individuals who rent the space from the store owner – not unlike an antique mall. Hundreds of people have committed a large portion of their lives to restoring one man’s junk to make it into another man’s treasure.
It is more than a trend, it’s an economy. Men and women are making hundreds if not thousands of dollars every month. Many people have made this their sole income.
People love making old and broken things beautiful again.
I was reminded of this truth reading about Selena Gomez. She made one of her first public appearances in months on Sunday. She accepted the award for Favorite Female Artist at the American Music Awards show (AMAs). Her acceptance speech was moving because of her vulnerability.
Here is a portion of her speech:
I had to stop. Because I had everything, and I was absolutely broken inside. And I kept it all together enough to where I would never let you down, but I kept it too much together to where I let myself down.
I honestly can’t figure out what she is referring to. Gomez has lupus. She’s had a very public relationship and break up with Justin Bieber. She was in rehab…for something. It is none of this and all of this. No matter what the issue, she was broken inside.
We love the thought of a beautiful, rich celebrity admitting to their brokenness. Even more, we love the restoration of these to a newer and deeper beauty.
These thoughts about restoration haven’t come out of thin are for me.
I’ve been meditating on Isaiah 58 for the last week. It is a prophecy given to the nation of Israel. They are on the brink of disaster, but this prophecy is about what will follow the brokenness. It’s about restoration.
Eugene Peterson, in his translation of the Bible says it like this:
You’ll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew, rebuild the foundations from out of your past. You’ll be known as those who can fix anything, restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate, make the community livable again. -Isaiah 58:12
In this case, the “you” is you…me…us. Out of the brokenness of our lives, we will build beautiful communities. It’s who we are. It’s who we are made to be – restorers.
There is a reason the repurpose trend is so hot. There is a reason Selena Gomez blew up the internet this weekend. We are made to restore, rebuild and renovate.
What does that look like in your life? For me, as a pastor, it means working with families to find restoration and renovation spiritually. It also means using my creativity to find new purpose in my own life. Further, it means leading and guiding other leaders to help others rebuild their own lives.
You are made to restore, rebuild and renovate. What does that look like in your life?
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