Restoration

Today we’re talking about restoration. You know, we all have that piece of furniture in the garage or an old photo album on the shelf—the kind of thing that, with a little love and care, could be brought back to life. God does the same thing with us.

Psalm 23:3 (NLT) says, “He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.” Restoration isn’t just about fixing what’s broken—it’s about renewal, about God breathing new life into the places we thought were too damaged or too far gone.

Maybe you’re walking through a season where something feels chipped, worn out, or forgotten. Let's talk about the messiness of “work in progress” moments and remember that our God is in the business of making all things new.

Have you seen those “work in progress” signs on a road? There is this one road in our town, and it has taken them like a month and a half to get this road done… I’m not sure why, because I’ve seen other roads get done in about a week.

When I think about it, my guess would be that the one road is taking longer because when they started restoring the road, there were more issues and cleanup needed once they got into it.

That’s life, right? We can think something is going to be easy, but once we get started, we find that there is actually more to it than it seemed. Sometimes things take longer than we expect.

Luckily, God knows all that is needed, and as He restores our hearts and minds, He will be sure to cover every step needed to make sure everything is done right.

Missteps happen, but God never leaves us, and He will help us get back on the right path.

Our scripture tells us that God guides us along the right path.

The path of a Christ-follower is not an easy path. There will be struggles and trials to face. But that path is a little easier at the same time because we know that God knows the way, and when we keep our hearts postured toward Him, we are better able to handle anything that comes our way.

There are things that come our way that seem impossible, but with God all things are possible.

As life throws you curveballs, stay on the path that God gives you and ask Him to continuously guide you and give you the knowledge of how to make it through with wisdom and discernment.

God’s renewing strength is so dependable and unending that when we are weary, He tells us to call on Him, and He will carry our burden. He really does want us to call on Him anytime.

We all have told a friend or have been told by a friend to call us anytime, and we will be there and help when we can and the best way we can. I know we all mean that, too.

But sometimes we don’t make that call because we don’t want to burden our friend, or we do get the call and don’t know how to help, or we live too far away to help. Or sometimes, no matter how much we want to help, we just aren’t in a position to help.

But God is always in a position to help. He is available at all times. He has the time and the strength to help us through.

Psalm 23:3 (NLT) says, “He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.”

Have you ever tried to restore something—or at least watched a video of someone restoring something—because you thought it would be easy? I have redone some furniture, and every time I underestimate how long it will take me and how messy or difficult it will be.

Why do I do that? I don’t really know, but I’ve done it, so I should know. I think this is because, just like every season we walk through is different and will be handled differently, every piece of furniture and what needs to be done will be different.

Don’t underestimate the time it will take or how messy it will be—just take it one day at a time.

I was watching one of those yard cleanup videos, and the caption on this video was, “Life is about choosing a path! Mine was very messy, and after a good cleaning, it started to look better… not perfect but better.”

I found this to be interesting. The video was of a guy mowing and weed-eating the pathway up to a house. I watched the guy weed-eat, edge, and blow off all the grass that he cut. He could have stopped there, but he kept going—he pressure-washed the walkway. It looked great when he was done.

When it comes to our lives, we need a little cleanup. We can do just as this guy did—one step at a time—and make changes.

When it comes to the restoration of our hearts, we need to think all the way down to even the smallest parts that need to be changed and restored.

Have you ever seen those people who restore old oil paintings? The process that takes is tedious.

There are so many steps, and they also have to do one section at a time. One of those steps is so dramatic that you would think the cleaning would be done after that… but no, that’s just removing all the dust, dirt, and aging.

When we become saved, our restoration begins, and we can feel so great and so changed that we think, “That’s it—I’m good, I’m saved.” But that’s just the beginning. We are cleansed by the blood of Christ, but now the deep work and restoration really begin.

So, as you go along in your walk with the Lord, know that as different things come up and changes are being made, God is refining and restoring you.

Psalm 23:3 (NLT) says, “He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.”

Bringing honor to God means to live a life of integrity, to worship and praise Him, and to respect and fear who He is.

I was fearful of my earthly father because I respected him and wanted to make sure I was living as he taught me to live. He used to say that our name was ours, and we needed to live in a way that, when people heard our name, they knew who we were by the way we lived—respectful, helpful, kind, and most of all, a part of God’s family.

The same is true as a believer in Christ. We want people who hear our name to remember and know without a doubt that we were followers of Christ and we lived that out.

Honor God by knowing Him and living out your life for Him.

What is your story of renewal and restoration—your testimony? Where is God working in your life right now?

I was reading the daily devotional we have here at KJIC called The Word For You Today, and on this particular day, it was talking about how God wants to work through you. In one section of this devotional, it mentioned how Jesus would go away and often pray while others slept because He had one purpose, and that was to do what God had of Him each and every day.

That got me to thinking about my day-in and day-out tasks. Do I spend enough time in prayer asking God what He wants of me each day and then focusing on that and being about the purpose He has for me? Or do I just ask Him to be with me and guide me, but without specifics? I feel like this stuck out to me because I’m not being specific enough in my prayers to truly be about God’s purpose for my day. I more often pray about what I have set for the day and for God to be with me.

So, I’m changing my prayers to focus more on what God has for me to do each day. In this, there will be restoration and purpose. Just as Jesus only did and said what God wanted of Him, that is what I will strive to do as well.

We are to follow Christ and disciple others as well. When we are doing this, we are, in fact, going about our purpose, and that is to bring others to Christ and help them in their walk. God uses us to help in the restoration and understanding that others need.

The best way to connect with others is by sharing your restoration story; they need to learn from you and what God has done in your life. Community is so important in the restoration and discipleship process.

All things work together for God’s good and His glory, which is why our story can be used to help someone learn to know the love that God has for them.

Think about the areas in your life that feel like they need a fresh coat of paint or a gentle mending. Restoration doesn’t happen overnight—it’s a process. And sometimes, the waiting is part of the beauty.

Psalm 23:3 reminds us that God renews our strength and leads us back onto the right paths. Even when the cracks show or the edges feel rough, He’s carefully working to make you whole again.

So, don’t lose hope in the unfinished parts of your story. Hand them over to the Master Craftsman. Because when God restores, He doesn’t just patch things up—He makes them even more beautiful than before.