A quick look around the world will reveal to us multitudes of brokenhearted individuals. We see brokenheartness in the faces of suffering people in the news, amongst our neighbors, our friends, in our very own families and in the mirror. Even the most devout among us suffer from brokenheartness. We turn to a variety of addictions in an attempt to escape the pain. It doesn’t make sense, why such suffering in the world if God is all loving? Why doesn’t God simply come in and save us? Why does he allow his beloved children the experience of such pain? After all, he is God and we know he has the power to free us of this pain.
To lay claim to an answer of these questions would require we know the mind of God, which we could never comprehend. Scripture shows us that pain is the result of sin. Our personal sin, generational sin, collective sin of humanity and original sin all contribute to the pain humanity experiences. However, instead of seeking why we suffer so, I would like to look at how we can transcend and transform the pain.
As I have shared in previous writings, I too have experienced my fair share of pain in this lifetime. It is through this pain I have come to experience deep empathy when I lay witness to suffering. One of the reasons I do the work I do is because I have walked the mile walk that many are now walking and I made it through. And I want others to make it through too! It is the tender love of our amazing God that rescued me, and trust me, I’m nothing special on my own. I’ve made my fair of mistakes and I have certainly fallen short of God’s vision for my life; however, like you, I am his child and I know he loves his children greatly.
Let’s look at today’s Psalm, Psalm 34. “The Lord hears the cry of the poor.” So who are the “poor”? The poor are those who are brokenhearted, their spirit is somehow lacking the fullness God has available to them. Their spirit is poor in spiritual richness. They are you and me. When we are in this state God hears what our heart is crying out for. So, when we are hurting are we crying out for forgiveness, mercy or compassion for those who have hurt us? Or, are we crying out for un-forgiveness, merciless justice or revenge? Remember, whatever our heart is crying out for our Lord hears us because he is close to us during this time. So perhaps we need cry out in accordance with God’s wishes for our lives and the lives of others.
Further on in Psalm 34 we see that those who are crushed in spirit are saved by God. To be crushed in spirit implies that there is little room for anything else. No room for hate, anger, resentment or even happiness, joy or love. It is when the spirit is emptied out that God will fill it up with his magnificence, and his magnificence is far beyond the happiness, joy or love the world has to offer.
Psalm 34 also reveals to us that when a man (or woman) is just many troubles are experienced. That’s right, being a good and just person does not give one an “easy” pass in life – pain and brokenheartedness will still exist. However, the just person is delivered from ALL their troubles – that’s right – ALL their troubles. Unfortunately, not many of us are fully just so we still walk around carrying our brokenhearts within.
So what if we loved Christ as much as the Apostles did in our first reading today? Would we no longer be poor? Would this love change our life? What if we honored God over the world in all areas in our life? Would we need to empty ourselves first so God could fill us up before we had the inner strength to put God before the entire world? Yes! The Apostles’ hearts must have been bursting with this very fullness that God offers us. Their hearts had obviously been crushed and emptied so that they could be filled with God’s spirit. No more were they hiding in the upper room my friends.
At this point the Apostles knew who Jesus was, he was the one above all, the one who sits at the right hand of the Father and the one whom God sent to speak the truth. Today’s Gospel (John 3:31-36) beautifully tells us who Jesus Christ is. The Apostles believed in him so much that allowed themselves to become crushed in spirit and emptied out so that our Lord could fill them up.
We too can empty ourselves like the Apostles did, and we must strive to if we desire true joy and happiness. We must die to ourselves so that we can fully live. The surest way to this end is humility and forgiveness. Seek humility, seek to see the other as more valuable than yourself, even when they harm you. Grow in forgiveness so that you can be free of anger and pain. I know this can be almost unbearable to comprehend when you are in the middle of brokenheartedness. However, remember, God hears your cry when you are brokenhearted. So call upon him, he is especially close to you during this time. Ask him to help you grow in humility and forgiveness. We do not have to, nor can we, accomplish great humility and forgiveness on our own. We are mere humans living in a sea of sin and it is with the help of God that we will experience the freedom humility and forgiveness offers us. It is with the help of God that we will find real freedom from brokenheartedness. In the process of emptying of ourselves we will experience the true happiness and joy that only God can offer.
Jesus – I Love You!
