Brokenness


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Things break due to wear and tear or accidents. They usually end up in the trash. People are like that at times. Somebody wrote,
In this world, broken things are despised and thrown out. Anything we no longer need, we throw away. Damaged goods are rejected, and that includes people. In marriage, when relationships break down, the tendency is to walk away and find someone new rather than work at reconciliation. The world is full of people with broken hearts, broken spirits and broken relationships. [1]
Most, if not all of us who read this are broken in one way or another. We all have weaknesses. We all have failed. We all have sinned. We have hurt and have been hurt by others. We have not been whole from the start, anyway. We were born sinners. We are already broken the moment we were conceived. As we live our sinful lives and as we live in this broken world, we continually experience it.

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But in the midst of all these, we can all experience grace.
There is something about reaching a breaking point that causes us to seek the Lord more sincerely. … There are some things in our lives that need to be broken: pride, self-will, stubbornness, and sinful habits, for example. When we feel our brokenness, God compensates… [2]
The burden of brokenness need not break our backs. But it should drive us to our knees to declare our need for God.

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In that broken condition, we meet God.
I am the high and holy God, who lives forever. I live in a high and holy place, but I also live with people who are humble and repentant, so that I can restore their confidence and hope. (Isaiah 57:15, GNB)
Just imagine! The almighty God would meet us where we are, right there in our brokenness. And, He promised, “I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts.” (Isaiah 57:15b, NLT)

If we think that God no longer cares for us in our brokenness, we are so wrong.  Our brokenness is His starting point, too. He gathers the broken pieces and makes us whole. But He could only do that if we acknowledge our brokenness before Him through humility and repentance.

“Broken” Step

Read Isaiah 57 slowly and repeatedly, preferably using different Bible versions. You may use https://www.biblegateway.com/. Write down your reflections about brokenness according to Isaiah 57.

[1] “What does the Bible say about brokenness?” Got Questions? retrieved from http://www.gotquestions.org/. Emphasis added.
[2] Ibid. Emphasis added.

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