I, the Lord, made you, and I will not forget you. I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free. Isaiah 44:21-22

 

Can you imagine working in the best restaurant in the world and dropping a plate of food about to be served?

 

Massimo Bottura, arguably the best chef in the world, shared how one day when serving an order of lemon tart, the dessert was dropped by his sous chef. None of the pie touched the ground, but the beautiful meringue peaks were broken, the pie crust crumbled, and the lemon filling splattered. Massimo looked at the splattered mess and said, “Look, it’s beautiful! Let’s rebuild the broken stuff!” His sous chef looked puzzled.

 

With intention and artistry, Massimo spread lemon filling across plates and built a fantastical modern dessert with the name, “Oops! I dropped the lemon tart.”[1] Now one of their most popular and famous desserts all started with a mistake. Massimo instantly and creatively saw beauty in the unexpected.

 

Thankfully God takes pleasure in bringing beauty out of our mistakes in ways that are beyond our imagination and understanding. He never shakes His head at our messes, saying, “This is too much for me!” God embodies a word called redemption. Redemption means to save from sin, error or evil. Saving and making something beautiful out of brokenness isn’t just something God does– it’s who He is. He says, “I, the Lord, made you, and I will not forget you. I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free” (Isaiah 44:21-22).

 

Whether it’s a dropped tart or a far more serious mess, remember God is your Redeemer.

 

[1] Chef’s Table. (2015). Season 1, Episode 1: Massimo Bottura. [Streaming Video]. Netflix. https://www.netflix.com/watch/80007945