Overcoming Trials

7 Powerful Truths for When You’re Feeling Broken in Life

I’m rushing to make the house presentable before slipping out the door for a Wednesday night meeting.  It seems I can’t stop the frenzy of hurry that’s overtaken my body.  I have no way of knowing this flurry of activity is about to be a hard lesson on what to do when you start feeling broken in life.

I hurriedly shove a white porcelain cup on top of a clumsy stack of plastic children’s dishes, and then it happens.

The cup slides straight out of the cabinet and onto the kitchen floor.

It breaks into a handful of tiny pieces, white shards that threaten soft little feet.

I hear the feet patter toward the commotion, and I bark a sharp command about staying in the living room.

Picking up the pieces with the ferocity of a woman on a life-saving mission, I double-bag them in the garbage and race to the basement for the vacuum cleaner. When I ascend the stairs, the little one is standing in the center of the kitchen.  His bare feet are inches from the razor-like pieces of porcelain.

When You’re Feeling Broken

I yell.

It’s all in the name of protection, but there’s no denying I’m yelling.

Instead of obeying my command, the little one folds onto the floor in a million pieces, just like the cup that’s shattered on the floor.  Suddenly, the cup, the meeting, and the million pressing things that need to be done don’t seem so important after all.

I crumble with him, scoop him up, and carry him to the safety of the living room.  We sit on the floor in all our human brokenness, hold onto one another, and watch robins search for worms on the lawn.

I tell him I’m sorry and don’t try to justify the fact that I was only trying to protect him.

The shards rest quietly on the kitchen floor.  Broken and undisturbed.

By the time Daddy comes in from the garage, the kitchen floor is safe again, and there’s no evidence of the small disaster.

I’m fifteen minutes late for my meeting, but everyone understands and smiles with grace.

Driving home from the meeting, the moon rises low and white over the horizon.  I consider the brokenness of the day. It seemed to be anything but broken in the moments before that cup shattered, but as I look more closely, it’s as clear as the moon rising white.  It was broken long before the shattered cup.

God Uses Brokenness When We Bend Low in Humility

My brokenness often looks like a frenzied, striving woman, trying to keep all the pieces together but coming unglued with every imperfect moment.

It wasn’t until the cup shattered and the little guy crumbled and I fell with him that good brokenness came.

King David wrote: My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psalm 51:17, NIV).

Godly brokenness comes when we let ourselves fall dependently into his arms and give up our striving efforts to live in our own strength. Good brokenness comes when we let others see our vulnerabilities and don’t hide the things we haven’t figured out. Good brokenness comes when we go lower and offer our broken hearts to God, trusting that he won’t throw them away, but that he’ll piece them back together with greater beauty. #brokenness #Godinsuffering Click To Tweet

You might be feeling broken today.  If so, the following truths are for you.

 Let’s look at seven reasons why we don’t need to fear the broken moments and broken seasons in our lives:

1. When you’re feeling broken, God is shaping you.

God will use your broken moments to show you where he wants to shape and mold your life.

The secret is to keep your heart soft and teachable.

My broken moment in the kitchen reminded me of the kind of mother I wanted to be.  I was reminded of the gentleness I want to exude, and God used the moment to shape me (to read more about how to live with less grit and more grace, join me here).

2. God delights in using broken vessels for his glory.

I’m good and accomplishing my goals in my own strength.

This determination served me well for decades, but it didn’t help me grow in dependence upon God.

In truth, God’s power shows up when we are weak, not when we are succeeding in our own strength.  Every broken moment is an opportunity to turn to God and watch for his power to be made perfect through you.

3. When you are feeling broken, God’s open arms await.

God used a broken heart to return King David to Himself.

When I keep my heart soft, God uses brokenness in my life to show me just how much I need God’s everlasting arms to catch me.

He uses brokenness to lead me to his open arms.

4. Feeling broken might be the platform for God’s next miracle.

God used broken loaves to feed five thousand and then some.

When our fists cling tightly to what we think we can control and manage, God lets us hold on.  Our holding on is also what keeps God from working the next miracle in our lives.

5. Struggles remind us of our need for Jesus.

God used broken fishing nets to challenge the disciples to depend on him rather than their own efforts for their needs.

Are you struggling today?

Let your struggle remind you of just how much you need Jesus.

6. Brokenness often leads us to let go of the wheel.

God used a broken ship to steer Paul to the island of Malta to reveal the gospel to the people there.

Where have you been trying to steer the course of your life, only to veer off the path?

God is inviting you to let go of the wheel and let him direct the way.

7. Only through the brokenness of Christ do we find healing.

God used a broken body, pierced for our sins, to provide salvation for all humankind.

May we never forget this truth.  Christ’s brokenness on the cross is the gateway to our healing and hope.  Because he was broken, we can live whole and healed.

~~~

I walk into a still house after the meeting and turn on the hallway light. There on the floor, a small shard of white greets me at the entryway, flung fifteen feet from the site of the fallen cup.  I pick it up and hold it on the tip of my finger.  It seems we’re sweetly broken together tonight.

A Devotional Book for Your Broken Seasons:

I have a gift for you today.  Hope for Hard Days is a free 10-day online devotional to help you hold onto hope when life is tough.  You will find 10 readings to help you connect with God and claim his peace.  Click here and I’ll send it to your email inbox today for free with promo code HOPE.

 

These Two Books are Free on Kindle Unlimited as eBooks and Also Available in Print:

God wants to work in your life to accomplish what you’ve been unable to do through willpower alone.  Lean Into Grace: Let God’s Grace Heal Your Heart, Refresh Your Soul, and Set You Free shares practical ways to experience God’s freedom, healing, power, and presence in your life.  Find this life-changing book in eBook form for free on the Kindle Unlimited Plan or for 12.99 in print right here.  (You can sign up for a free three-month Kindle Unlimited trial if you are not a member.) This book will transform your life and revitalize your relationship with the Lord!

Calling All Moms and Daughters!

Additionally, my 12-year-old daughter, Bekah, and I wrote a mother-daughter devotional book to help mothers and daughters grow closer together while connecting with God.  Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith includes 60 devotions with Scripture, commentaries from both of us, conversation starters, and even a shared journaling section.  Multitudes of mothers, daughters, mentors, and younger women are being transformed by this book!  You can find this book in eBook form for free on the Kindle Unlimited Plan or buy a print copy for 11.99 right here.

I’m passionate about equipping others to encounter God in powerful and life-changing ways. When I’m not writing, you’ll find me hiking, jogging, exploring wild places with my three young children and husband, leading small groups, and mentoring younger women. A certified special education teacher, I am on leave from the classroom for a season of chasing frogs and playing in creeks with my little ones. Most of all, the compassionate love of Jesus has forever ravished my heart, and I'm emphatic about making his love known to the world.