30 – Days with the Word – January 15

30 Days with THE WORD
January 15, 2021

John 1:1-2, ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He (the Word) was in the beginning with God (NKJV).’

The Master Puppeteer, old and wise, hobbled through the workshop. A workbench wrapped the interior of the room and a sundry of tools, worn and tired, dotted the surface. The wooden countertop was scarred with years of memories scratched into its face. A chimney made of ancient brick and mortar filled the center of the room, poking its stack through a sagging roof. The coals glowed hot; embers sharing heat like a secret. Cobble floors, refusing to soak up any warmth, were a cacophony reminder that it was winter, and cold outside. The Master Puppeteer moved slow and purposeful. His gaze meandered slowly across the display in front of him.

Many shelves lined the stone walls and a myriad of faces stared back. Tears streamed down some cheeks while some cheeks were rosy and bright. The smiles seemed plastic, and the eyes, vacant, the Master Puppeteer thought to himself; his heart hurting within himself the more puppets he viewed. Most faces seemed to plead, ‘Pick me!’ but their hearts remained stone-cold within them, no life or desire. How could he ever pull off this scene? the Finale, this dying to what is old that once hindered being reborn with new life and new hope if all his cast looked so forlorn and hope-LESS?! So sad. So empty. The Master Puppeteer sank to a heap on the floor with his heart in his hands and his face on his knee. It felt like a dead-end; how could this show go on?!

The Master Puppeteer shivered. It was cold and silent, and frost danced across the windows where Jack had played last night. Suddenly, he knew! Rising to his feet, he first moved to the center of the room to stoke the fire and warm his hands, and then cautiously, he made his way to the old case hidden in the corner of the shop. Dusting it off, he opened its leather latches, reaching in through the velvet lining. With gnarled fingers and a forgotten rhythm, the violin found its place easily at his chin; the chords rising like tendrils of smoke from the chimney. ‘Great is Thy faithfulness; great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning, new mercies I see.’ The melody was haunting yet familiar and so very hopeful. In awe, the Master Puppeteer watched as his dolls came to life! Breathing hope into their beings, he heard hearts begin to beat, and as they rose from their shelves of stone, these puppets, they ever so slowly, came to life, and began to follow Him.

Ezekiel 36:26-28, ‘Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you will keep My Words and do them. You will live in the land that I gave to your fathers; and, you will be My people, and I will be Your God (AMP).’