Psalm 34:18 – Crushed in Spirit

 "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."

Psalm 34:18


We're made to be breakable, and only God can put us back together.

The walk with Christ doesn't always feel great. Sometimes it even feels unbearable. Somedays it feels more difficult to draw near to God. We're broken people, and God has a way of putting people in situations that show them how sin and idols can become everything to us. When they're taken away, it can feel like we lose everything - because we made them everything. Even if we try to experience them along with God, we can make him the 3rd friend walking behind us on the sidewalk that's too narrow.

Let's spit out a few truths, just to make sure I'm on the same page with anyone reading this. Temporary things give us pleasure. God gives us joy. We're hard-wired to prefer pleasure over joy - that's our default setting. Our idols build us up. They also tear us down. God meets us where we're at, no matter where we find ourselves. In other words, if everyone is acting according to their nature, we will always choose God last - God will always choose us first.

I try not to get too vulnerable on these posts, out of respect for my own privacy, and the fact that it can be generally uncomfortable for people to read about personal details that are too... personal. But I think it's also important to be somewhat vulnerable and let people know that no one suffers alone. Sin leads all of us to the same place, one way or another. It leads us to suffering, fear, brokenness, loneliness. I've felt a time or two like I was put through the ringer, and sin has tried to creep its way in, in many forms. David did too. That man was given blessings, had them taken away, ruled at the top, wallowed at the bottom, praised God and yelled at Him in complete agony. But the moment I give up on God is the moment that He gives up on me. He is good, and everything else will let me down.

I understand that it sounds pessimistic, but what I said is only a self-evident truth. Look around - the world is broken, twisted, dark, filled with confusion and deceit. So if we're speaking on the world, it should sound pessimistic. The good that we find in people and places only comes from God. So we have to expect everything else that we invest our spirit in to leave it completely crushed.

He chooses to feel every ounce of our pain. Don't try to put yourself back together alone.

"Bring me back to You."

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