The waters of the lake have been chased away by months of drought.  And the mushy mud has been transformed into gritty dirt as I walk were once fish played hide and seek.  Muscles, Clams and Oysters shells lay half buried and scattered all along the surface of the former lake bottom.  You would be surprised at the stuff you can find once concealed and buried in the muddy waters of Weiss Lake. 

        As I walked on the freshly baked soil the loud sounds from the crunch of my footsteps frighten the birds sunbathing on the rocks stranded by the departed water.  I look down at this jagged gallon jug that once rested veiled and hidden in the murky waters.  Its serrated and sharp edges looked like a crude saw-toothed blade waiting hungrily for someone to feed it.  This once useful container had been distorted into something dangerous and ugly.  Broken by neglect and carelessness what was once beneficial and a blessing was now reduced to a perilous booby-trap.

        It is easy to curse the recklessness of the thoughtless person who left this jagged jug hidden in the shallow waters.  But as I look at this ruined jug I feel some kinship.  I too once found myself discarded, broken and lying in the mud.  Bad choices and foolish pride left me out of control and headed for destruction.  Then something amazing happened; someone looked beyond the filth I was laying in and my jagged edges and picked me up out of the mire.  They introduced me to the Great Physician who is a Specialist at making something useful and beautiful out of something broken and confused.  Then they lovingly and patiently helped put the broken pieces back together. 

        Let us be the kind of people who look beyond the rough exterior and see the person.  Let’s be patient and kind with those who have fallen and always be willing to help those who are broken.  Let our life’s be filled with compassion and gentleness as we walk the dusty shores before us today.  Life is filled with many obstacles and hidden dangers and maybe one day we will need someone to help us out of the mud.  Some things are ruined when broken, but the heart is at its best when it is broken.  Help someone today pick up the pieces when they feel broken.  Compassion is the capacity to put love into action.  Happiness is a choice; choose to live a compassionate life.

Something to think about:

• Our Father demands a whole heart, but he will accept a broken one if he gets all the pieces?

• Courtesy is the quality of heart that overlooks the broken garden gate and calls attention to the flowers beyond the gate.

• A broken heart can be mended into a more beautiful pattern if the stitches are made with kindness and love.

• Kind words are music to a broken heart.

• The sweetest songs often come from broken hearts.

• In love’s service only broken hearts will do.

• More people fail for lack of encouragement than for any other reason.

• The people who are lifting the world upward and onward are those who encourage more than criticize.

• Our Father takes life’s pieces and gives us unbroken peace.

• Compassion is the capacity to put love into action.

Thankful for my compassionate friends
Rickey Moore

PS... Can you find the Ladybug???