Everything (Everyone) Has Its Usefulness Even When Broken

By Josephine Lim Weston

We returned home to London few days ago after a long Christmas and New Year break spent with my in-laws. Upon entering our house my husband tried switching on the light but it didn't come on and we soon realised there was no electricity supply hence no heating. Because we had been away, the house has its own electrical appliances that will require on-going electricity to keep going so the credit we paid earlier into our British Gas smart meter had all ran out and it automatically shut down.

My husband calmly said he had managed to top up the electricity and so what we had got to do is to restart both the electricity supply and gas boxes located in our entrance cabinet box room which we had been unable to access through the proper door outside as the keyhole had jammed tight even after plenty of oiling. So what we could do was to gain entry through the small square side-door. Somehow I managed to reboot the gas supply box located at the bottom of the box room but without rebooting the electric box the gas heating will not work either.

Unfortunately the electricity box is located very far right of the box room that no way I could ever climb in as there's a fixed plank of wood stopping me from climbing on top of it and also no way of seeing it either as it's on the side wall. Since I've got smaller hands and physically shorter than my husband only I can do it so my husband told me to try reaching for the buttons but the question is how I could reboot the unit if I can't see the electricity box and neither could I feel it at all. So I made a quick prayer and asked God for wisdom as usual when I face unsurmountable task. An idea came - "Yes, mirror is what we need" (apart from torchlight as it is a cold dark winter season at the moment and we arrived back home at 4.30pm which was already dark by then).

I used my compact mirror at first but it was too small to trace the electrical box at all. The other proper mirror we got was too long and big to fit though the gap so we need another mirror that could just nicely fit through the hole and give me just a nice view to locate the "invisible" electrical box. Another idea came - "my broken mirror would be just perfect". My son broke the mirror on my dressing table few months ago but since it's still usable I had forgotten to order a new one. So now the broken mirror hopefully will come in handy and be useful in emergency. I adjusted and readjusted several times both the broken mirror and the torch light until the electrical box and most importantly the tiny buttons are visibly reflected on the mirror; then I had to guess without being able to see but just by feeling with my fingers, trying to press the correct buttons on the electrical box with my husband's guidance via information on his iPad. Voila, finally I managed to press the 2 buttons of the electrical box needed to reboot our electricity, hence the lights came on followed by our heating- thanks to God and the "broken mirror". Then straightaway I received this prompting in my heart for the title of my next blog article - "Everything has its usefulness even when broken" (All of us are useful and still a blessing even when we think we're broken physically, emotionally or spiritually like the useful broken mirror that we thought should have been thrown away; yet it still serves its purpose and was able to even produce result during most critical moment).

We all have regrets, setbacks and disappointments in life. If we're given the opportunity to travel back in time I'm sure we would all be tempted to change lots of our past and straighten things up "a bit" and make everything better or perfect as much as we can. But, you know what: it's no point of us looking back in the past and feeling regret and sad and disappointed with ourselves as all these setbacks and disappointments are our learning curves. As someone said - "The thing that don't break us make us" but even a broken mirror has its usefulness and a blessing in times of emergency.  So how much more we who are created in God's image? Regardless of how many setbacks, failures, rejections and disappointments in life they will only make us stronger and more knowledgeable as we learn and discover more as we go along.

Even a jawbone of a dead donkey was used by Samson to set himself free from his captors. 

Judges 15:14-17

14 When he (Samson) came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily, and the ropes on his arms were like flax (linen) that had been burned, and his bonds [c]dropped off his hands. 15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, so he reached out his hand and took it and killed a thousand men with it. 16 Then Samson said,

“With the jawbone of a donkey,

Heaps upon heaps,

With the jawbone of a donkey

I have struck down a thousand men.”

17 When he finished speaking, he threw the jawbone from his hand; and he named that place Ramath-lehi (hill of the jawbone).  

Be comforted with this:

Psalm 34:18

The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

So let us not give up on ourselves or on anyone who is feeling broken at the moment. As the Lord promised in Jeremiah 29:11-14a 11 For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call on Me and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear [your voice] and I will listen to you. 13 Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and I will [free you...]

A beautiful song to share that I hope will encourage and lift your spirit:
Let Us Exalt His Name by Joseph Prince
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2pMoCV_EwQ

Here's the picture of the useful broken mirror: