Brokenness

“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.  We live in a throw-away society; everything from diapers to electronics is disposable.  Not too long ago, I trashed a camera because the lens was stuck, and would have cost too much to fix. Why then does God put such a high value on brokenness?  In this magnificent psalm, King David is a “broken” man. His sin with Bathsheba, and all the ensuing messiness has brought him to “the end of himself“, as my Mom would say.  His own attempts to glue together the shards of his shattered life had failed.   Crying out to God, in his fragmented state, he repented and received God’s solidifying forgiveness.  We often confuse sacrifice, and doing rote religious stuff, with what truly pleases God. God wants our hearts, lives and souls, and that will never occur through mere sacrifice.  It may sound harsh, but He will allow us to use up all our personal resources until we reach that state of brokenness.  Only then can we fully realize that everything we need, can only be found in Him. Are you, or are you on the verge of “cracking up”?  God is patiently waiting, Superglue in hand!!