The Shenandoah Valley has some of the most scenic roads anywhere. What a treat it is to enjoy this natural beauty on routine commutes and errands. Too often, however, we get accustomed to the beauty and take it for granted.
Some items that occasionally mar this setting are junk cars. Sprinkled around the valley are old vehicles in various stages of tin cancer. Many are overgrown with honeysuckle and other vegetation, but occasionally some old paint shines through.
Lots of these represent good intentions, however. Many people enjoy restoring such vintage automobiles to their former grandeur. With an abundance of JC Whitney orders, body putty, and elbow grease, these rusting relics can be transformed into something that even surpasses their original splendor.
Some of these cars are also scavenged for parts. In some locations, acres of wrecked automobiles are arranged in rows for backyard mechanics to search through and extract their needed parts while paying the owner a fraction of what they might elsewhere.
These large junkyards made me think of God’s desires for us. He travels on the highways and backroads of our world to seek and save that which is broken and useless. He pays our price, tows us out, and begins to restore us.
Ezekiel tells us that one of His first actions is to remove our hearts of stone and replace them with hearts of flesh. He forgives our past accidents, many of which were intentionally our fault, and pulls out our dents.
He replaces our wiring which has been chewed up by life’s squirrels and straightens our frames which were actually crooked from the factory. He realigns our thinking and times our souls to His distributor. With the same passion of a professional, He commits all day every day to this endeavor. He even installs an OnStar system so we can communicate with Him through His Holy Spirit.
His skill is not limited to our spirits, however, for He’s also adept at repairing the upholstery of our emotions. He replaces the rotten foam and rusted springs of bitterness with joy and contentment. He even gives us a fresh coat of paint that shines through our facial expressions.
On Sundays, we drive into God’s garages many of which are topped with steeples and crosses. Instead of being auto junkyards, we assemble as collections of God’s handiwork in various stages of restoration. Some older saints are nearly complete while some of the rest of us have just been rescued.
The beautiful truth is that it’s not God’s will for any of us to be rust buckets. His heart is for every person to be rescued and restored. Regardless of what we may think, He doesn’t consider any of us only good for parts. There’s not a single person beyond His ability to salvage and renovate.
One other important factor is our cooperation with the Master Mechanic. Even though old clunkers have no choice to be restored or not, we do. We must choose to allow God to save and restore us. Many of us attempt repairing ourselves only to realize later our inability to fix our deepest flaws. Even with the multitude of self-help books YouTubes available, only God can get us on the road to heaven and we must allow Him to do so.
Finally, let’s understand God’s purposes in this. Unlike many car enthusiasts, it’s not God’s goal to create showpieces. Each of us has a purpose of glorifying our Restorer, but also to be involved in delivering His good news, grace, and mercy to others. He wants to use us to help recover and restore other rusting cars around us.
Whenever you see a junk car setting near the road, remember that God wants to restore every one of us and it’s not His will for any to rust up and perish. He can restore each of us to do His work.
Blessings, George