Hope in the Middle of Brokenness
by Cathy Martinez
It is so much easier to brag about the great things that happen in our lives or even the great things we do. But there are days when the sky is dark and weakness enters our world. Bad things happen to us or maybe we choose things we later regret. We become frustrated and angry, or sad and grieved. We lose the will to fight and want to give up. We cannot see a way out of the situation we find ourselves in. The possibility of light breaking through is inconceivable. And the life we once knew seems too broken and way beyond repair.
This is when the season quickly shifts from greatness to brokenness. When we enter this season, our first instinct is to hide from the world. Hide from the guilt and the shame. Hide from the pain that weakens us. Hope seems lost and nowhere to be found. But the truth is, there is always hope in the middle of brokenness. There is hope in a God who loves us and who wants us to trust in Him to help us through. There is always hope because where our strength ends, His begins.
In Peter’s second letter to the church in Corinth, he states, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take [the thorn in my flesh] away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me” (v. 8-9 NIV). Peter’s message is that God makes us strong in our own weaknesses. And even though we can depend on others to help us through our struggles, there are places inside of us that only God can heal. He is the only One who can wonderfully create something new from the shattered pieces that we are left with, if we allow it. This is hope in the middle of brokenness.
For me, this means knowing that when I pick up those shattered pieces and place them into God’s hands, I can trust that He will create a new masterpiece in me. It is showing the world how God’s goodness shines through my pain. It is sharing God’s light in my life through my story so that others understand that God can do the same for them. This is the hope that God provides for me and the hope that I pass on to others.
The key is knowing that I have a part in spreading God’s hope to the world. In the book of Isaiah, it states, “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (v. 40:31 NIV). I know that in order to gain the hope that I need to move forward, I first must come to God, and only then will He supply me with all the hope that I need to soar, to run, and to walk through the brokenness.
I believe that God never leaves me alone with my broken heart and my weakened soul. It is His promise to give me seeds of hope on my healing journey. And as long as I take the time to acknowledge and to collect each seed that He leaves for me, then I can be brave enough to be broken in the eyes of the world. Brave enough to allow my brokenness to glorify Him!