Lent Devotional: RestoreSample

Restore: God is restoring beauty

On a Tearfund trip to Ethiopia, I stayed overnight with a family who were the perfect hosts. We chatted while I gingerly attempted to roast some coffee beans, agreeing that all we wanted was to love our children, keep them safe, and provide the best for them.

My host had worked hard over four years to build up a successful small business. She told me of life before she joined a self-help group – and how different it was now, sending her boys to school and being able to buy medicine when it was needed. She held her head high – and she radiated goodness. It was clear that her whole life had been transformed.

As I left, I reflected on how God restores beauty on the inside first. The decision to start the business came first from within her, thanks to support and encouragement from her group and church. At the same time, something new was happening on the outside. God restores us from the inside out. He is waiting to transform us. Are we ready?

Lord, you have searched me and you know me. Search me today, and work in me so that I am radiating you from the inside out. May I be ready for change on the inside. Only you can provide that restoration that leads to peace and wholeness. Only you can be my shield, and the one who lifts my head high. Amen.

Fiona Michael, Tearfund