More than Stained Glass - Broken but Beautiful

This message invites us into a profound truth: God doesn't dwell in buildings—He dwells in people. Through the story of Mary's encounter with the angel Gabriel in Luke 1, we discover that God's favor isn't earned through perfection but received through surrender. Mary wasn't from the right city, didn't have the right credentials, and certainly wasn't expecting to carry the Savior of the world. Yet her response—'Let it be to me according to your word'—became the doorway for miracle. The sermon beautifully illustrates how we are like stained glass: broken, imperfect, with jagged edges and cracks. But when God's light shines through our brokenness, something extraordinary happens. Just as stained glass windows once told the gospel story to those who couldn't read, we become living testimonies of redemption. The Japanese art of Kintsugi—repairing broken pottery with gold—reminds us that God doesn't hide our scars; He fills them with His glory. Our fractures become the places where His light shines brightest. This Christmas, we're challenged to move beyond mere religious decoration and become vessels through which divine light illuminates a dark world. The question isn't whether we're broken enough—we all are—but whether we're willing to surrender those pieces to the Master Potter.