- araratchurch
- May 11, 2022
- 3 min read
“The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit.”
Psalms 34:18 NKJV
When I was in high school, a popular song came out entitled, “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart? I remember hearing it and identifying with it as so many other young girls did at the time (making it a very popular song).
It’s interesting, the things over which our heart is broken. When we are young, generally a broken heart is connected to unrequited love or being rejected by someone you “love.” But, we don’t develop immunity to broken hearts by the end of our teenage years although the cause may vary.
Being broken hearted is something you really don’t have to describe to anyone; we all know how that feels. Whether the broken heart resulted from a lost love, shattered dreams, or the myriad of heart breaking opportunities we face, it basically feels the same: awful.
Another phenomenon I have noted is that being brokenhearted—in the terms we have been discussing—general leads to self-pity: why did this happen to me? I Have found that self-pity never lifts you out of the hole of despair. Now, don’t misunderstand me, God will also help with the broken heart that comes from personal loss if—instead of resorting to self-pity—we present it to Him, asking for healing.
The Apostle Paul, in dealing with a situation within a church where they were allowing things they should not, had given them apparently some very harsh disciplinary words. Later, he comes back and says that, although he was sorry at first for the way they had received it, he wasn’t sorry anymore. Their godly sorrow led to their salvation!
“For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”
II Corinthians 7:10 NKJV
Having our hearts broken over the things separating us from our Lord, is a very good thing. As a matter fact, Jesus came to heal the hearts broken over our fallen state. In quoting from the book of Isaiah, Jesus stood in the midst of The synagogue in Nazareth, making this proclamation:
““The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.””
Luke 4:18-19 NKJV
The devil wants to keep us wallowing in self-pity concerning things in our life that really are not going to have any eternal consequence. Yes, those things hurt terribly now; you may wonder how you can go on living. But, it’s not going to affect your eternal destiny. On the other hand, unresolved sin separates us from God, leading to an eternity separated from Him.
I praise God that He made a way where there was no way for us to be have our sins forgiven and be connected to His never-ending life. But, the repentance that leads to the access of what He his already done for us, cannot be a step that is skipped. We must allow our own sin to break our hearts to the point of extracting true repentance before the Lord. Then we can receive His forgiveness, never again to revisit our sins.
In our portion from Psalms today we see David recognizing that the Lord is near to the brokenhearted. Yesterday, we discussed the fact that David knew what it was like to have a load of sin lifted through forgiveness. But, what had gotten him to the point of repenting before the Lord, was a heart broken because of sin. And, instead of allowing that brokenness to turn into condemnation, he took that broken heart and placed it at the Lord’s feet. Additionally, as we see him asserting in another Psalm, he knew the Lord would never reject a broken heart laid at His feet.
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise.”
Psalms 51:17 NKJV
So, whatever broke your heart, whether your own sin or some personal loss or disappointment. The Lord will not turn you away if you present that broken heart to Him. As my father sang so many times over his years of ministry, “He’s the healer of broken hearts.”
For today let us know and understand what David knew:
The Lord is near to the broken hearted.
- araratchurch
- May 10, 2022
- 5 min read
“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit.”
Psalms 32:1-2 NKJV
I opened up a video, sent to my phone, to see a face—very much made in my own image. The face I saw showed great distress, eyes swollen from tears. The only sound coming forth was that of snubbing as she tried to release her words. Finally the words came: “Ginny, I did something bad; I ate all the chocolate.” The words were spoken from a mouth still carrying the mark of shame. Suddenly, a flood of memories swept over my soul of all of the times I felt the same emotion when faced with my own failings.
I remember when I was about nine years old, going down a tall slide at school, and ripping the hem of my new dress. Now, to understand the seriousness of this situation, you need to understand that I had been forbidden (by my mother) to get on the slide (basically any of the schoolyard equipment). She feared that I would be injured. Probably rightly so. But this one day, as the children were lining up to go down this tall slide (a slide that would not be allowed on any schoolyard in this day and time), I “found myself” in that line. About three rungs from the top, I regretted the decision. But other children occupied the rungs below me and I was embarrassed to ask them to let me go back down; I didn’t want them to think I was afraid. Fact is, I was afraid—not of the sliding experience—but of disobeying the command of my mother. So, my turn came and I positioned myself on the top of the slide and let go. Very near the bottom there was a rusted place, causing a very sharp open hole (as I said, it was a different day and time). As you might have guessed, the sharp edge caught the hem of my dress, ripping quite a large hole. I spent the rest of the day dreading having to face my mother with what I had done. I actually wrote a note (I still have), explaining to my mother what had happened and expressing my deepest regrets. To be honest with you, I don’t remember what her exact response was. But, I don’t remember that she was harsh or severe. You see, it didn’t much matter whether she was harsh or not; I was already so disappointed in myself that there could be no punishment worse than what I was already experiencing. Maybe she knew that.
Shame feels awful. More so (to me) than the fear of punishment.
I remember a time when my mother faced her own moment of shame. I was riding in the backseat of the car she was driving. This car was a gold Buick Electra 225, a beautiful vehicle. A man (connected to someone in our church) restored totaled cars and offered this to my father at a price he couldn’t refuse. It was beautiful. He was proud of it. And, my mother was driving it. Well, we pulled into the old Sears on Ponce de Leon; into the very tight parking deck. My mother, in attempting to turn into the next row without swinging out far enough, wrapped the car around a large concrete support column, totally crushing the passenger door beside me. She, hearing the crunching of metal, knew this was not going to be good; and it wasn’t. She got out of the car and saw the awful result of trying to turn a car at a 90° angle. I remember all of us praying that the Lord would heal the car before we got home; she was inconsolable. Upon returning home, she presented the terrible deed to my father. He looked at the car and then looked at her and said, “It’s just a car, why would you be so distraught?” I remember the relief she experienced. But, I wasn’t surprised at his response; that’s the way he lived.
Failure feels horrible. Combining that with disappointing someone you love and/or fear, compounds the impact of your shame.
At the beginning of “The Pilgrim’s Progress” (John Bunyan), we see the main character, Christian, looking for a way to get the heavy load off his shoulders—the load of sin. He goes on to find out that the only thing that lifted that load, was identifying with the suffering and death of Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul knew all too well the terrible load sin brings. But, he also had a revelation of the forgiving power of the work of Jesus Christ:
“But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.”
Romans 7:23-25 NKJV
“The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
I Corinthians 15:56-57 NKJV
In our portion from Psalms today we see David expressing the wonderful feeling of relief in finding forgiveness of our faults and failings, forgiveness of our sins. Being familiar with the life of David, knowing how much he wanted to do the will of his Good Shepherd, we can imagine the shame he felt when he knew he had failed. We also know because we’ve been there. But, David never made the mistake of continuing to try to hide his sin from the Lord. He was quick to repent when feeling the Lord’s displeasure. He knew how it felt to be forgiven.
“Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
Psalms 103:2-5 NKJV
No matter what you are feeling today in terms of your own faults and failings, no matter the heaviness of the load of shame, guilt, or fear, look at Jesus. See His suffering, His sacrifice. Repent before Him, recognizing that His blood has covered a multitude of sins.
For today let us know and understand what David knew:
There is no heavier load than the load of sin, no greater gift than that of forgiveness.
- araratchurch
- May 10, 2022
- 3 min read
“For I hear the slander of many; Fear is on every side; While they take counsel together against me, They scheme to take away my life. But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies, And from those who persecute me.”
Psalms 31:13-15 NKJV
It’s very amusing to watch different creatures in the animal kingdom using fear alone to repel potential harm. There are animals that “blow up” to look bigger; some sport menacing colors; others may employ an ear-bursting screech; but whatever fear-provoking tool is used, it is meant to stop an attack before it starts. All by way of fear.
Fear is powerful. Indeed, fear is a controller.
Think about it: if you were ever really scared by something, did you forget about it right away? Do you still remember it? Maybe the fear has continued to control your behavior, even years later!
Sadly, fear is used all the time to motivate people to do all kinds of things. Fear can make people relinquish their freedoms, buy a particular self-defense product, submit to unneeded and potentially harmful, medical procedures, and so on, and so on.
To clarify, the type of fear being discussed here is the state of heightened anxiety and dread, caused by some threat. Additionally, we must make a distinction between having the kind of fear that keeps you safe versus BEING fearful (literally, full of fear). Suffice it to say, people who have allowed fear to control their lives, directing their steps, and occupying their thoughts, are not happy campers; nor are they likely to fulfill their purposes in God.
Throughout the Scriptures we have our Lord telling us not to fear. If you want to see for yourself, just do a study on how many times “Fear not,” or some form of that command, is said by the Lord throughout His word. The book of Isaiah alone is replete with the Lord instructing His people not to fear, rather choosing to trust Him. Here is one of my favorites:
“But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;...”
Isaiah 43:1-3 NKJV
The Lord would not repeatedly instruct His people not to fear if it were not possible to control your fear. Like so many emotions, we tend to think that fear is beyond our control. Whereas, in our own strength, that may seem to be true, when you pair the command to not fear, with the assurances given by the Almighty, you should have the formula for victory over fear.
Jesus instructed His disciples not to fear. At one time, the disciples thought they were in a storm that would be their ruin. As they panicked, waking the Master, they were met with this reaction:
“But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.”
Matthew 8:26 NKJV
In our portion from Psalms today we see that David was confident that—as long as the Lord was on His side—he need not fear. He acknowledges that opportunities for fear are all around; but he chose rather, to trust the Lord. And, this wasn’t a one time observation by the Psalmist. Here is another one I particularly like:
“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles.”
Psalms 34:4-6 NKJV
No matter what you’re going through today, no matter what invitation to fear has been sent your way, please understand that the fear-provoking storm raging in your life needs only the Master to speak to it. Choose to trust Him and turn down the invitation to fear.
For today, let us know and understand what David knew:
We must turn down every invitation to fear, choosing rather to accept the invitation to trust the Lord.