Broken Hearts

Do you grieve over your sin?

Have you asked God to make you see sin the way He does?

 

My heart has been broken so many times over the years.

 

I guess realizing Donny Osmond wasn't singing to me when he sang "Go Away Little Girl" on the radio can't really qualify as my official first heartbreak.  Though I might be able to argue this, given time.

 

My first heartbreak came when I was 16.  His name was Danny and he was going to join the National Guard.  So, he was "releasing" me to date other people and basically breaking up with me.  I don't remember many other details about this situation, but I do remember crying so hard and my chest feeling so tight and compressed I could hardly breathe.

 

My next heartbreak came in college.  I thought he was the "one" and we would eventually marry.  I had taken fanciful flight down the path of our future and already named all four of our children!  We dated for a year.  Our parents met and actually liked each other.  My parents adored him and his parents adored me.  We were perfect.  Then, one day in September, he revealed to me that he wanted to date other people.  I remember feeling like someone had punched me in the stomach and I couldn't breathe.  I was devastated.  This time, I turned to God for comfort and solace.  It didn't make that heartbreak any easier.

 

As I consider all the heartbreak I've weathered through it is interesting to note they all revolve around relationships.

 

I recall hearing this comment: "Enduring heartbreak is wonderful in that it enlarges your heart and allows you to love more."  Though I think that was meant to be comforting...I now think that is a load of dog excrement!  If your heart is broken over a relationship, the only good thing that comes is the passage of time.  When you are over however long that period of time it takes to mend from heartbreakage...when you are on the other side of it and can look back and be surprised you weatherd through it...

 

I've endured some very personal heartbreaks which cannot bear writing about just now, as they still have significantly sharp edges that still barb me with grief.  I am not angry nor unable to accept God's grace, mercy and forgiveness in these situations, it is just that the lingering scars remain....painfully so.

 

And, as I reflect upon the following devotional, I do know I have been deeply grieved over willful sin in my life.  I have been grieved over the sin ravaging some of your lives.  But as I think about some of the relationships I have been so hard hit about, leaving me utterly breathless with a broken heart - I do not think I have felt that strongly towards sin.  Which, makes me survey the hard places (even still) in my heart where I need the just hammer of the Holy Spirit.
 

What about you?

Are you sickened to heart by your sin?

Does your heart break at the sin which causes a rift in your relationship with God?

 

I want to see my sin the way God does.  That is my prayer for me today, and for you.

 

PlanetWisdom.com Devotionals

God Likes Broken Hearts Posted: 23 Oct 2008 10:15 AM CDT "You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." (Psalm 51:16-17) David's sin broke God's heart. You can hear it in God's words to David through Nathan in 2 Samuel 12. He said, in essence, "Why did you do this? I gave you so much. I would have given you more. Why did you do this to me?" God was betrayed. David understood that he couldn't buy his way out of his sin to be reconnected with God at a heart level. Yes, he could mechanically work the steps required by the Law, and David followed the Law. But he knew what God wanted most was for him to be as broken over his sin as God was. God responds to our brokenness. We can be caught in sin without really feeling bad about it. We can be sorry for the consequences while our hearts remain as hard as rocks. God wants to crush those rocks to make us as devastated by our sin as He is. He will not turn away from our genuine sorrow and repentance. Think: Do you sometimes feel like your heart is hard about your sin even while you're confessing it to God? Is it hard for you to believe God's heart is broken over your sinful choices? If so, why do you think that is? Pray: Ask God to make you sad about your sin. Ask Him to help you to feel sick about it. Ask Him to help your heart to break over the sinful choices you make. Do: Really. Seriously. Pray that. Visit PlanetWisdom.com for more great resources!