Today’s lesson is a valuable one, especially for those who have been going through trials, distress, or loss. They are experiences we all have to face, at some point, in our lives. How blessed we are to see in the Word of God how to deal with these difficult times or seasons in our lives. May the Lord cause His Word to come alive for you today as you read this post. In Him, Eric

Our topic for our blog post is a somber one today. At some time or other in our lives, we will encounter a circumstance or situation in which we will feel heartbroken or brokenhearted.

Some of the verses we will look at today include the following descriptive words when referring to the brokenhearted: affected with sadness, broken, hurt, wounded, broken down, afflicted, stricken, crushed, depressed, or despair.

We find that similar words are used to define ‘brokenhearted’ in various dictionaries. The American Heritage Dictionary states, grievously sad. Merriam Webster defines it as: overcome by grief or despair. On line, at vocabulary.com, the words: sorrow associated with irreparable loss, are used. (My addition to that is in regard to broken relationships or death.). Then, gotquestions.org defines the brokenhearted as: people who are weakened, crushed, or destroyed in spirit. Those who feel spiritually bankrupted, needy, and helpless.

Barnes Commentary states that the brokenhearted are those ‘afflicted with griefs and troubles, have mental sorrows, a troubled spirit, and sad heart!’

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia describes them as ‘People who feel their spiritual bankruptcy, helpless, and long for the help and salvation of God.’

Many of the things we see and hear of in our world today are frequently the cause of our being brokenhearted. Many have experienced a time of great loss. We have loss of jobs, or relationships, family, and friends.

So many families have become dysfunctional, it is almost the new norm in our society. There is divorce and then, in ‘families’ where there was no commitment of marriage, there are constant split-ups which cause pain for the individuals involved as well as for the children.

According to the CDC, the suicide rate has risen largely because of insecurity over financial conditions. The common causes of suicide are feelings of dread, despair, loneliness, and hopelessness. The loss of a family member’s life taken in this way causes great pain, guilt, and broken hearts.

The poor and elderly become heartbroken because they feel abandoned and thus lonely and depressed.

Sickness is rampant and leave many facing impossibly high medical bill debt. Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death for both U.S. men and women. The most feared disease in the U.S. with more than 1.6 million new cases per year is cancer. And now, diabetes affects 30 million adults and children. (National Institute of Health). Many feel fear, dread, and heartbreak when facing these diagnoses.

Brokenhearted-ness is a natural reaction that comes in life when we face heartrending circumstances.

There are three Scriptures which pretty well describe what many are going through.

Proverbs 15:13 (ESV), “A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed.” ‘Sorrow’ in this verse means: pain of heart, hurt, injury, and pain. ‘Crushed’ means: crushed, stricken, afflicted, or sad. (Gesenius Hebrew Chaldee Lexicon).

Proverbs 17:22 (NLT), “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength.” ‘Cheerful,’ sameah in the Hebrew means joy and gladness. ‘Medicine’ (gea) means cure or healing of a wound. ‘Broken’ means afflicted or stricken. A broken spirit dries the bones (NKJV) or saps a person’s strength.

Then, Proverbs 18:14 (NIV) reads, “The human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?” ‘Bear’ means endure or suffer with. The New Spirit Filled Life Bible’s textural notes adds: “ A broken spirit is one’s personhood when it has been crushed by life’s difficulties and is often accompanied by depression. Sadly, many blame God for their misfortune and seek worldly solutions or simply fall into despair.”

Do you find yourself in a place of brokenhearted-ness right now? Are you feeling crushed or hopeless because of your current circumstances? Have you suffered a major loss in your life and feel you will never recover?

How can we break the grip of despair and brokenhearted-ness on our lives? There is wonderful news! The answer is found in Hebrews 4:16 (NLT), “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” I need you to really grab hold of this truth. The God of the universe, through the sacrifice of His Son, has enabled us to approach the very throne of God, where we find His grace (His gift or favor) and mercy (compassion and clemency) that will help us in our time of need! The New Spirit Filled Life Bible textural notes beautifully adds: “‘Come boldly’ literally means, without reservation, with frankness, with full and open speech. We approach a throne of grace, not of judgment, obtaining mercy for the past and grace for the present and future.” (Jesus is our High Priest who sympathizes with our weakness.)

Psalm 34:18 and 19 (NLT) reveals that the Lord is near (brings him aid) to the brokenhearted, and saves or rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

The righteous faces many troubles but the Lord comes to rescue them - each time!

The passage of scripture Jesus read in the synagogue (Isaiah 61:1) as recorded in Luke 4:18 describes Jesus’s ministry to His people (including you and me). Luke 4:18, “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed”

Psalm 147:3, “He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.” With Hebrew meanings added, this verse would read: ‘He heals the individual distresses of the brokenhearted or those who have been broken into pieces and bandages their wounds, hurts, injury, pain, and literally all their sorrows.

What an amazing Word for us! He loves us and is always there to minister to every hurt we experience!

There are some who mistakenly believe that they cannot come to God because of the sin they’ve committed in the past or presently are committing. However, sin need not permanently keep us from right relationship with God! If you believe that your sin is so offensive that God is not, cannot, or will not forgive you, then you are believing the lie of the devil.

Matthew 18:11-14, “For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. 12 "What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? 13 "And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. 14 "Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”

1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Romans 8:1 and 2 (ESV), “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” ‘Condemnation’ in the Greek means damnatory verdict.

Jesus gave us His promise to take care of our broken hearts. John 14:27, “"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” The Greek word for ‘peace’ here is eirene, meaning: a tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot. You notice, Jesus did not say that He wishes to give us peace, He said, “I leave it and give it to you!” Hallelujah, He is the Prince of peace and He chose to leave it here and give it to us.

Praise God! No matter the troubles, hardships, or heart break - in the midst of it all, we have His peace. Even in the midst of the grief my wife and I both experienced when our parents passed away, we had a deep abiding peace that never left us.

The Lord has invited you to take your tiredness. weariness, and exhaustion to Him and He will refresh your soul. (Matthew 11:28 NKJV).

In 1 Peter 5:7 the Lord declared that you can give up all of your cares and anxieties to Him because He cares about and has regard for you. This verse ministered to my wife’s soul when her father was dying. An individual who was not aware of her circumstances spoke that verse to her prophetically.

Psalm 55:22 (NLT), “Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” Give Him your burdens, He has promised to take care of you and will not allow you to be overthrown or let fall.

Quoting the Kingdom Dynamics section regarding Isaiah 61:3 in the New Spirit Filled Life Bible, “The promise of a trouble free Christianity is a falsehood, dispelled by the Master Himself. He does promise to walk with us through the fire and to be constantly at our side in moments of sadness, pain and grief. However, the greatest understanding comes when we realize that He is not only with us, but has chosen to use the trying moments to produce in us a result that compares to a ‘crown of beauty.’ He takes what is assuredly ugly (ashes) and turns it into beautiful victory (crowns are given to victors). Let’s hold fast to Him in difficult seasons of life and stay close to his heart. He will do what we cannot - turn despair into rejoicing while making us living displays of His splendor.”

Isaiah 61:1-3, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."

I will close by sharing some quotes by Tracie Braylock from an article titled, “Healing for the Heartbroken,” taken from proverbs31.org

“The God of the universe cares about you. He sees the pain you’re experiencing, and He cares about the condition of your heart.”

“God seeks to repair the injuries and fully restore functions in every area of your life.”

“Allow Him to reconstruct the brokenness and infuse joy with those damaged situations.”

God knows exactly what you’re going through and what it will take to restore your heart to proper working order.”

“When you begin to surrender, resting in His ability to do whatever work is necessary in you, you allow Him to heal your heart and fully mend and bind your wounds, until whatever you’ve been through is no longer apparent on the outside. And all the work on the inside begins to reflect His love, care, and tenderness toward you for the rest of the world to see.”

If you are brokenhearted today, cry out to Him. He will hear and pour His love, peace, mercy, and grace out upon you.

Praise the Lord… until next time, live in His peace, His love, and His care.

Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is taken from the New King James Version.

ESV English Standard Version

NLT New Living Translation

NIV New International Version