“a return to the original, unimpaired condition”
A river is always purest at its source. Along its flow it may be restricted. polluted, or diverted but if want to taste it at its best we’ve got to return to the headwaters before such changes take place. The same is true in relationships. If a marriage is to know restoration, whatever has been restricted, polluted, or diverted between the husband and wife must be removed, cleansed, or redirected. If our blood flow and heartbeat is diminished then blockages or restrictions must be removed or factors must be added and/or repaired. As we experience frustrations within our country, community, and culture we discover something has been reduced, contaminated, or in some cases - gone off the rails. A restoration is necessary for our constitutional republic to work as it was intended.
The author John Eldridge wrote, “You would not ask someone with a broken arm to swim the English Channel, so you cannot demand that the broken live as if they were whole.”
Even within the great gift of God’s family our assemblies can be threatened with attitudes and activities (or the lack thereof) that disconnect us from God’s supply. Without His infallible Word and the pure flow of His grace, mercy, holiness, the life and health of the church is diminished. Even so, the Psalmist desired a return and prayed, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." (Psalm 51:12) And collectively God’s people cried out, “Restore us, O God; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” (Psalm 80:3)
Restoration was part of Jesus’ lesson on prayer to His disciples, and to us in Matthew 6:10, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Where does the right and rule of God’s kingdom need to come most in your life right now? Are you praying for restoration? I am. Only He can take an impossible restoration project like me and make something beautiful out of my life. Perhaps it’s why I love the lyrics from Elevation Worship that say:
You turn graves into gardens
You turn bones into armies
You turn seas into highways
You're the only One who can
That’s why the Bible ends with a picture of restoration in Revelation 22:1-5 that looks a lot like what we had been separated from in Genesis 2:8-10. So if you’re struggling with health, heartbreak, need, or scarcity just rest assured that God takes restoration requests seriously.