“Beauty for brokenness, hope for despair” - Graham Kendrick
The song ‘Beauty for Brokenness’ by Graham Kendrick has been playing over and over in my head for a number of days. I think there are times when the Lord gives us an ‘ear-worm’ to remind us of His presence. This can come in the form of scripture or a familiar song, but it’s something that certainly brings us great comfort and encouragement when we are focussing on the storms.
I am going to confess to feeling a little broken at the moment, following a time of personal loss and with many around me experiencing poor health. Witnessing so many families in the locality struggling with the cost of living, and of course, with the world situation at this time. It’s a Christian time of ‘fight or flight’. Do I press forward in faith or give up? In many ways the latter sounds like the easier option, especially when it feels as though our prayers are going unanswered … but, of course, it isn’t at all.
On reflection, it was when I was at my most broken that I found Christ. It was at my most broken that I realised that I needed a Saviour, because I didn’t have all the answers, or because I didn’t feel in control of my circumstances.
There are some friends in our lives that we only see at parties, we only see them when things are going well, and they want to be a part of that victory feeling. That isn’t the case with Jesus! Jesus isn’t just there on the mountaintop, when we are ready and willing to shout out a big ‘Hallelujah!’. Jesus is there when we want to cry out and scream ‘Hosanna’, save us! He is there in our suffering; He is there in the deepest and darkest valleys.
Billy Graham told a story of an ant that was headed on a path to danger and asked how we could communicate the seriousness of the situation to that ant. He concluded that the only way to really communicate with that ant, was to become an ant.
When God sent His one and only begotten son into the world (John 3:16), He made Himself flesh to communicate His love to us and to demonstrate His grace and compassion. He saw a broken people and sent the solution for that brokenness, in the form of a Saviour.
It’s in our brokenness that we can turn to Jesus, as He says to us in Matthew’s gospel:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
(Matt 11:28-30)
God is the God of the poor, the friend of the weak and the Saviour who can make the broken – just like me – fully restored.
Craig James
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