“The Lord hears His people when they call to Him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” -Psalm 34:17-18 (NLT)
There have been times of deep brokenness in my life that have led me to seek Scripture for a taste of hope. Psalm 34 gives lots of hope for a hurting person. I ran across this chapter in my Bible and saw a note from a few years ago I had written in the margin…
I have been rescued and restored so many times. I am a testimony to the Lord’s constant presence. So is the heartache a bad thing, really? Would I have known the Lord with this depth without a broken heart?
The broken heart is worth it for that depth.
That old phrase “whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger” rings true here in the context of God’s response to the calamity. If He has called us to a challenge, He either has already equipped us or will equip us soon to get through that challenge. From my own experience, every time we face these broken places in our lives by clinging to God and finding shelter in His presence, we know Him deeper.
Consider this: how well do you know a person’s clothing? You see them from far off and they have on a blue shirt, but the closer you get, you see the blue shirt is actually a white shirt with blue pinstripes. Upon closer inspection, you see that the pinstripes aren't even solid lines, but rather, broken stitches in a line.
This is how it is with God.
We see Him better when we get closer to Him. And sometimes, getting closer only happens when we are clinging desperately to Him for help, guidance, or strength in our broken state.
I'm reading through the New Testament and Psalms with my friends this year. Would you like to join us? This post is from our discussion on Facebook here, and we'd love for you to jump in on the fun! Come stop by and leave your own thoughts on Psalm 34!
Special thanks to my friends at outpostChurch.
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