Beautiful Brokenness

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalms 34:18 NIV

I love broken people. Do you know who I’m talking about? The folks you meet and instantly click with? There are no walls of pretense you have to climb over, no barriers to keep you away. All you see is pure, humble transparency. Every time I meet someone like this it's refreshing... and convicting. 

Psalm 34:18 describes how precious broken people are to God. There are two key words from this verse to look at more closely. The first is shabar, which means to be broken. In Isaiah 66:9, shabar refers to the breaking process a woman's body goes through during childbirth. The second word is daka, which means to be crushed. Isaiah 53:5 describes how Jesus was crushed for our iniquities. 

When shabar and daka come together... suddenly Psalm 34:18 paints a different picture. We see God waiting like an expectant Father, holding us in His arms as we go through the breaking pains of labor. Even though it hurts Him to watch us suffer, He knows the process is necessary before His new life growing inside us can finally be delivered in Heaven one day. The pride that separates us from Him must be destroyed. Our will to resist Him must be crushed.

Then the moment finally arrives. We join our Savior Jesus in Heaven, perfectly sanctified by His sacrifice for us. Nothing separates us anymore. We have always been His, but now we know just as we are known (1 Cor. 13:12). Our culture sees brokenness as something to be avoided because it makes us weak and vulnerable. But maybe that's the whole point. Maybe we only begin to understand real intimacy with God once our hearts break for the same things that break His.

 H. C.