Kintsugi is a 500-year-old Japanese art with an interesting philosophy. In kintsugi, broken pottery is valued as a treasure rather than a piece of trash. The art treats breakage and repair as part of the esteemed history of an object—something of a redemptive beauty—rather than something to disguise, cover up, or replace altogether. That’s why in Japan, people will pay big money for the elegance and aesthetic appeal of “golden joinery,” the kintsugi method of mending a vessel after it has been fractured.

The brokenness of our past is an integral part of our unique story, and God’s glorious art of making beautiful things out of broken pieces. When you consider all the people in Scripture who God used in redemptive ways, there is hope for anyone. God never sanitizes the stories of people in the Bible. Our modern church curricula and publishing agencies often “clean up” the stories of these “heroes,” especially when teaching them to children in Sunday School classes. Yet God gives the entire account for a reason. He gives the whole story—the good, the bad, and the ugly. The flaws and failures of others are canonized for a purpose. This is so that we would not glorify their successes or their failures, but that we would always make much of the God who is gracious enough, and faithful to love them despite themselves.

Abraham’s brokenness could be seen in the apparent biological flaw of being too old for God to use. Timothy’s brokenness could be seen in the opposite—being timid in the face of people who thought he was too young for God to use. Peter’s brokenness was exposed in his temperament, his impulsive behaviors, and his rash words at times. Plus, he denied Jesus three times when so much was on the line. The brokenness of Ruth and Naomi was felt in the grief of widowhood, the loss of loved ones. Hagar’s brokenness was rooted in a love triangle manifesting itself in jealousy, bitterness, and rejection. Hosea’s broken marriage was an embarrassing adulterous object lesson for an entire nation. Jephthah’s mother was a prostitute. Samson had a real problem with womanizing and revenge. Gideon was fearful and insecure. Martha was a chronic worrier. Elijah got suicidal. Jacob was a conniving, scheming cheater. Jonah was a prophet who ran from God because he didn’t like the people God sent him to minister to. Paul was persecuting Christians… before he became one. Noah got drunk… after doing something heroic for God. Joseph, well he came from a dysfunctional family that would’ve been typecast for a Netflix drama involving sibling rivalry, parental favoritism, abuse, and betrayal. These are the “elite” characters of that number one bestseller of all time—The Holy Bible.

Each of these characters are a picture of kintsugi—the way God views and values broken people, uses them for His glory, and redeems their stories for other broken people like you and me to be inspired with hope. Broken people are a treasure to God, and He has proven that throughout the ages.

If Jesus were the one telling our stories to others, what would the narrative sound like? If He was the one sharing your testimony, how would the story be told? What would be included? Imagine how pure, raw, and unrefined that would be.

The post God Uses Broken People: 33 People God Used Who Were Broken appeared first on Outreach and Ministry Resources.

A Parkour Athlete’s Faith and the Art of Falling Safely

As a child Coach Valley was adopted and gravitated toward crime, gangs, drugs, and violence. He was expelled from school and shipped to a “psych” hospital. After struggling with the meaning of life, he found hope and chased the dream of influencing youth and adults through coaching and the athletic training discipline of Parkour. Learn about Ukemi, and the art of falling safely in Parkour and in life.

Youth Discussion Questions

1. 1. What stands out to you about “Coach Valley’s” story?
   2. Why is it important to have a dream, or inspiration?
   3. Coach Valley shared that when he was growing up, all of his influences were pushing him down the wrong path. He stated that choosing to be around the right people is the most important thing for a person’s success because you become like the people you spend time with. What has been your experience with this?
   4. Can you relate with Coach Valley’s take on feeling like he never fit in anywhere as a child?
   5. Having the understanding that life is like a vapor, Coach Valley pointed to a question that changed the trajectory of his life: “What do I want to be remembered for?” Why do you think that is a worthy question to ask yourself?
   6. Coach Valley had a spiritual experience that shaped his faith as a young person. In what particular ways was that faith challenged?
   7. In Parkour, there is a thing called Ukemi, which is the art of falling safely. How did Coach Valley liken that to falling into the arms of God in our Christian walk?
   8. What might you need to surrender to fall safely into the hands of God today?

DOWNLOAD the Discussion Guide PDF

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“I can’t say I remember a certain time when things changed,” says Patrick. “Some people say you are a product of your environment. To an extent, I agree with that. But I think a lot of things contributed to my downfall – my father leaving the five of us, the abuse, the desire as a kid for acceptance but never receiving it. I never would’ve imagined one day I would be facing 45 years in prison for aggravated robbery with a gun, and five counts of kidnapping.”

Teaser video below:

As he sat in his jail cell awaiting trial, Patrick had much to think about. He pondered the time he and his friends broke into the wrong car only to see a guy come out with a 9mm in his hand. He thought about his overdose on L.S.D. and being comatose for three days. His mind raced to the time he was pushing crack on an opponent’s turf when a rival dealer chased him off and ran his car off the road with Patrick being thrust through the windshield.

“It seemed like at one point there were so many people who wanted to kill me, I didn’t know how much longer I would live,” he confessed. “Sleeping with a gun, the paranoid feelings followed me everywhere.”

Suddenly, the sound of a key in his cell door brought him back to reality. It was a C.O. (Corrections Officer or Guard), “Patrick, I’ve got some bad news for you. Your brother, Larry, was stabbed to death last night in downtown Cleveland.” The news didn’t seem real. As hard as it was for Patrick to accept, his brother, Larry, was gone forever.

Immediately, he went into an animalistic rage, throwing chairs all over the room. It took about ten guards to get him back into his cell. He spent the next month in solitary confinement without having the opportunity to attend his brother’s funeral.

What happened next is something that Patrick says he would never have expected. He had an intimate encounter with the Creator of the Universe. After crying out to God in utter desperation, “Jesus Christ revealed Himself to me in a way I never dreamed was possible. It was purely supernatural. From that moment I was forever changed, and miraculous things started happening almost immediately.”

He began to study the Bible and cultivated a personal relationship with God. He began writing to relieve stress while in prison – a therapy that would ultimately lead to his artistic destiny. “I never had a dream to be a musician. It was therapeutic to me, like a release. I never would’ve believed that only 10 years from the day my brother died, I would be writing this and things would be the way they are now.”

After serving three years in a youth prison, Patrick left the Department of Corrections with a new vision for life. In the last few years, he and his wife Jackie have had the privilege of traveling all over the United States and other countries performing their music and sharing what Christ has done in their lives.

Patrick’s core passion is for people who are where he once was – “the broken, the lost, the outcasts, the rejected and forgotten, the imprisoned, the addicts. Who would’ve thought that one day someone in the United Kingdom would buy my record, or someone in Sri Lanka would be inspired by one of my songs. Or that Australia would welcome me to do a month long tour. Who was I? Just a kid from the streets of Cleveland that society had written off as a lost cause.”

Who is Patrick Davis?

In his words, “I am the rose that grew from concrete. I am a survivor of the cruel streets of southeast Cleveland. I am someone who has shattered statistics, broken the curse, lived through death. I am a warrior who triumphed over my enemies, I beat the odds, I walked through darkness, only to find the light. I’ve engaged in a battle that’s been raging since the beginning of time. I’ve overcome my past, my pain and my struggles. I should’ve died, overdosed, been hit by bullets, been sentenced to life, I should’ve went back to jail, I should’ve stayed in the streets, fulfilled statistics, stayed hooked on drugs, became what they said I would be… nothing. But I became something. He had a plan, a future, a destiny that He placed inside of me since the creation of the world. No bullet could stop it, no drug could sedate it, no person could steal it, no prison could bind it, no demon could hinder it, because greater is He that is in me than he that is in this world.”

Patrick sums up his musical aspirations with these words: “My music is reality, not entertainment. So when the lights go out, you will still hear my voice. The trends will die, the images pass, but His word will continue through the corridor of your mind and soul. It pierces and divides, it rips through lies. It brings men to their knees, the proud resist it, but the humble receive it. Amazing grace how sweet the sound… that saved a criminal like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found. Was blind but now I see.”

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Regi has experienced the highs and lows of life. Raised in a Christian home, Regi learned values, morals and a biblical faith. Though he grew up in the church, it wasn’t enough to keep him from the luring temptations common to most college campuses.

Regi was a standout athlete at North Marion High School in Ocala, Florida, where he earned a basketball scholarship to Sam Houston State University in Texas. Going from his small Florida town to the big city of Houston was an enormous culture shock to the young athlete.

Teaser video below:

Basketball Ministry Resource

Though he had never touched drugs or alcohol before his college days, the peer pressure to experiment with them became a powerful enticement. Deeming it a harmless social drug, Regi started smoking marijuana at college parties and other get-togethers. But his quest for an occasional “high” didn’t stop there.

While at Sam Houston, Regi earned All-Conference and All-America honors his sophomore year. His aspirations of playing professional basketball took a sharp turn when he injured his knee during a pick-up game.

Having staked his entire future on his athletic abilities, his sudden setbacks led him into a state of depression. It was during this time that Regi turned to cocaine which eventually progressed into a deadly crack addiction. On a path to self-destruction, the hardwood superstar found himself on the wrong side of the law trying to support his habit. This ultimately landed him in a Florida state prison.

While incarcerated, Regi began to understand that his “biggest problem wasn’t a drug problem, it was a sin problem.” Being an avid church member growing up with perfect Sunday School attendance, he could see where his rebellion began long before his experimentation with drugs in college, it started as a kid when he made basketball his god, describing it as a form of idolatry.

During his prison term, Regi dedicated his life to Christ and made his priorities twofold; cultivating an intimate relationship with God and contributing to the advancement of His kingdom. Ten years after being released from prison, Regi says his life-mission is all about showing kids a way out of a troubled past and into a relationship with Christ.

Regi’s story is a perfect outreach resource for juvenile detention centers, urban youth ministry, and a stunning reminder for any Christian young person the progressive repercussions of giving in to peer pressure. A must have resource for every church youth group and Christian student going off to college!

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