Broken Things

I hate broken things. Nothing is worse than going to start the car and hearing that tell-tale silence that lets you know you’re not going anywhere, anytime soon - Or when your cable is out during your favorite show, when your favorite song skips, when your guitar string breaks, your grill won’t light, or favorite jeans get a hole in a inconvenient, conspicuous area. Of course most of these things can be remedied, but that is beside the point. I want things to work the way they are supposed to- to be able to use the thing right now. I’d rather not hassle with getting the stupid thing fixed, and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes it’s because the thing is beyond repair or not worth fixing, but many times I’m just annoyed and ready to get rid of the useless broken thing. Terrible and wasteful I know, but I’m just being honest.


It would be nice if things didn’t break, but there’s heaps of garbage around the earth to prove that broken things are part of this fallen world. However, brokenness is not limited just to our “stuff;” life is full of broken situations and broken people. Broken situations are everywhere: dysfunctional families, severed relationships, addictive cycles, financial ruin, discrimination, illness, death, victimization…. And, we need only to look in the mirror to find a broken person. Some of us are full of shame and guilt, some motivated by greed and self interest, some drowning in addiction, some living in hypocrisy, some lonely and desperate. In any case, this brokenness is all around us and in some cases in us. Sometimes the brokenness seems like too much and we wonder: “Will this ever be fixed? Can any possible good come from the broken mess?”

The answer is…YES! We don’t always know why things get broke the way they do, but our God is one who can restore broken situations and people. Not only that, there isn’t a person or situation so broken that God cannot use to demonstrate His love, advance His Kingdom and bring glory to Himself. Think about Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Imprisoned and limited to where he could preach the gospel and carryout his ministry, by all accounts Paul was in a broken situation. It would have been easy (and justified) for Paul or other Christians to questions what possible good could come from him being chains. However, Paul saw evidence that God was using this broken situation to advance the gospel. Moreover, a group self-serving, hypocritical Christians were ministering in Paul’s absence not only for their own gain, but to make more trouble for Paul. What good could from these sinners preaching the gospel? Well, much to our surprise a whole a lot. These broken people were still sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.

And the point is? Situations and people don’t always function the way we would like. There will always be situations that need resolution and people (including me and you) who aren’t worthy of being loved or used by God. But Jesus Christ restores and uses broken people and situations. These aren’t waste to be tossed aside, but pearls in the making. This is not always easy to see, and the truth is, not everything gets fixed. But the good news is that God doesn’t wait until we can figure it out or until everything is perfect to do his work in and through us. We have a hope and a promise that One Day this brokenness will be no more, but until then we must pray that God makes the most of our messes-those we create, those we observe, or those that just fall in our lap.

May God give you the strength and patience to navigate through brokenness.
May we offer grace to broken people, including ourselves.
May the Lord use us as agents of change in broken people and broken situations.
And please, Lord Jesus, restore the broken things of this life for the sake of your people and your glory.
Amen