“He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." ~ Titus 3:5
The little butler table looked
forlorn awaiting the trash collector. The legs wobbled, and its warped top was
gouged and stained.
For some reason,
Allen couldn’t resist it. To him, it was a miniature time machine; a window
into eras long passed and the ways they related to God and nature. It’d
expected to live in generations of its original family, yet there it was out by
the curb, waiting for someone to love it enough to keep it and pass it on.
But Allen kept imagining
the words of the lady who’d left it on the curb. “I couldn’t bear to throw it
away, but I’m moving into a smaller place. Maybe you could fix it?”
A few calls to
antique dealers confirmed it was just an old table, not a 200-year-old
treasure. And yet, there it was, in Allen’s basement workshop awaiting further
instructions.
What made him think
he could rescue a castoff? He’d been kicked to the curb himself after 28 years
of marriage and was still reeling from a messy divorce. The house where they’d
raised a family was now quiet as a tomb.
It still pained him
to see couples walking down the street, hand in hand. He didn’t want to go
anywhere or see anyone. It was easier to hole up in his workshop with the discarded
table.
He ran his hand
across the uneven top. One of the legs came off in his hand. They were both in
rough shape. Time for restoration to commence.
He
fixed the top by using clamps, a wet towel, and a very hot iron, repeating the process
for several days until the top was flat again. Next, he removed the old finish
and sanded it smooth. A friend made a matching piece from maple that he spliced
to the leg. Soon that drab, little table came to life in rich tones of golden
brown. It looked great!
Allen
found himself singing a familiar hymn, To God Be the
Glory – “Great things He has done!” Allen hadn’t felt much like
going to church, sitting in their old pew alone was more than he could bear. But
it was as though the church had come to him.
Today
the little table sits in Allen’s entryway, its finish as smooth as silk. It has
such character. That’s what happens when you weather hard times and come
through transformed, renewed, and restored. And a blessing from above!
“Praise the Lord! Let the earth hear His
voice! Praise the Lord! Let the people rejoice! Come to the Father, through
Jesus the Son: Give Him the glory! Great things He has done! ~ “To God Be the Glory” lyrics by William Howard Doane
