One of my mentors invited me to a Saturday morning Kintsugi workshop at her Art Studio.
God is always speaking, and on that particular Saturday, I was still enough to hear.
Kintsugi (Japanese: 金継ぎ, lit. ‘golden joinery’), also known as kintsukuroi (金繕い, “golden repair”),[1] is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage: (Wikipedia on Kintsugi)
The Art Studio had a variety of “vessels” to choose from for the Kintsugi project. There were beautiful ceramics, ornately patterned cups, and bowls of different sizes. I picked a little brownish earthenware bowl. It fits perfectly in my hands. It was plain and well-made. Pretty in its simplicity, it wasn’t fancy but something that can be used for practical everyday use.
It spoke to me.
In hindsight, I realized this is how I saw myself: small, straightforward, unassuming, useful, and not too delicate—sturdy even. It’s a quiet piece that invoked in me a quiet peace.
I am not artsy or crafty, and I have the tendency to rush things, but this process slowed me down. It was an exercise of inward seeing. I thought of how God said He was the Potter, and we are the clay. He fashioned me exactly how He wanted me to be, in His image. And I was wonderful in His eyes.
Sadly, I don’t always see myself how God sees me. My life path and decisions broke the creation He made. But as the Potter and my Creator, when I fell, He didn’t discard me or throw me away. Instead, He picked up the pieces, transformed me, and fortified me with gold. My broken pieces are evidently lined with the work of His hands.
I attended the workshop with a good friend. She said, “Kintsugi shows us how God holds each of our broken pieces between His fingers as the glue dries. He then holds the whole vessel in His hands until we are securely mended.” I am a visual learner. I clearly saw this image and related to it as I pieced together my own simple bowl.
When I got home, I tested my “new” creation. It still held water! Like me, though I was broken, with God’s hand on my life, I can still serve my purpose. I can still be what I was made to do!
Our host gave us a Thank-You Card and she told us to write a Thank-You note to ourselves.
Mine ended up being a prayer of reflection and gratitude:
“Create in me a clean heart, Lord. Help me examine my motives each day. I left home on a winter day almost 14 years ago; brokenhearted and afraid. I remember it was raining when I took the kids and we fled to the The Sheepfold Domestic Violence Shelter. I kept trying to protect and uphold my marriage. My idea of marriage and family became an idol.
It blinded me from seeing what You had planned for our lives.
You made me, Lord, and when You finished, You looked at me and said, “You are good.” You put me on a place on high. But life’s earthquakes and storms knocked me down. It broke me into pieces. Then You put me back together. I can still see and sometimes feel the jagged edges. But, You’ve transformed me and made me a reflection of Your creativity. Here I am, Lord. So many years later, changed. You bound up my broken heart. I am whole. Different. Made New.
Day-by-day I am becoming more and more of how You meant for me to be.
Beauty from ashes. Thank you God…
01-18-25 10:22 am entretopia Kintsugi Workshop Contact Teresa: 323/206-1115
I met a fellow Jesus Follower last week during prayer night at the OC Christian Center. And he shared this song with me. Music is instrumental in evoking my thoughts and speaking to my heart. Thank you, Donato, for this song, which helped unlock the key to writing this post. God is always using us to bring an epiphany to someone. I appreciate this “light bulb moment.”
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