Brokenness - Part 4

 How can you tell if you have a broken heart?

Note: this doesn't mean broken in a negative way, or destroyed - it simply means "surrendered to God, and made soft." 

• A broken hearted person is quick to repent and is soft towards those who would bring correction in their lives.

Proverbs 3:11-12 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor detest His correction;

For whom the Lord loves He corrects,
Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
Remember: repentance means to turn around - it is not enough to be sorry - we have to change our behavior and turn our lives around.

• A broken hearted person knows that they are the “chief of sinners.” In 1Timothy 1:15, Paul states:

”This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”

And in Ephesians 3:8,9:
”Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints

Paul was not saying that he was in sin now, but that he so despised the sin that he had been involved in, that he regarded himself as the greatest sinner of all. We don’t need to put some kind of grade on sin – marking some as more grievous than others. All sin keeps us from intimacy and fellowship with the Lord. The issue here, is that when we have been confronted with the depths of sin in our own lives, and have seen the seriousness of our own faults, then we know without a shadow of a doubt that we are at the top of the list as far as sinners are concerned. We don’t think of other people’s sins above our own. It is not that we need to grovel and think of ourselves as unworthy. On the contrary, we know we are made worthy in Christ, but we now walk with quietness and humility.

• A broken hearted person is willing for accountability and the relationships that God brings into their life. There can be a tendency to withdraw from relationships when we have been hurt. The Lord knows that we need people in our lives. It is important for us to remain as a functioning part of the body of Christ.

• A broken hearted person seeks acts of service. Servanthood has to become a foundation of our lives, as it will anchor us to humility.

• A broken hearted person promotes others.

• A broken hearted person is not defensive. This doesn’t mean you can’t stand up for justice and what is right in your life.

• A broken hearted person covers others in their weaknesses and is discrete and slow to speak.

• A broken hearted person is quick to ask forgiveness.

• A broken hearted person seeks holiness.

• A broken hearted person pays the price to change their behavior to serve God in holiness and obedience.

• A broken hearted person “walks with a limp” (Gen. 32:24-32) Jacob wrestled with God all night. During this time, God asked Jacob his name. His name means “the deceiver,” which was the core issue of brokenness and sin in his life. Jacob had to come to terms with deep-rooted sin and as he admitted his iniquity to the Lord, he was touched in the thickest part of his flesh – his thigh – the place where his strength comes from. Jacob limped for the rest of his life as a reminder of this God-encounter. In the same way, we need a God-encounter over these heart issues, and we need to “limp” in our spirit. Not in a bad way, of course, but in a way that acts as a reminder of who we really are without the grace and forgiveness of the Lord. It is not a handicap – just a reminder to walk gently and humbly before others.

• A broken hearted person walks in renewed authority with God and man.

                                                 

A few quotes that offer us wisdom on this subject:

Adversity introduces a man to himself

Trials, temptations, disappointments - 
all these help instead of hinder,

if one uses them rightly. They not

only test the fiber of a character,

but strengthen it. Every conquered

temptation represents a new

fund of moral energy. Every trial endured

and weathered in the right spirit

makes a soul nobler and

stronger than it was before.

James Buckham

Great men and women are more likely to be forged in prisons than castles.

The person who succeeds in God

is not the one who holds back fearing failure,

nor the one who never fails,

but rather the one who moves on in spite of failure.

Jesus was wounded and broken for us - so that we would never have to remain in this state. As with Christ, the resurrection secures our victory and glory whenever true brokenness is our foundation. 

My prayer is that we would all walk on the journey towards true brokenness - it is the place where God begins His work of greatness in us.

(This 4-part series is dedicated to 2 friends - P & A who have shown so many pictures of true brokenness in their triumphs over suffering - May God continue to bless you both and your boys)

Part 1: HERE
Part 2: HERE
Part 3: HERE