GOD IN OUR RUINS

in every pew sits a broken heart....

For a Christian believer, heartbreak of any kind could qualify as suffering for Christ. We may not be suffering for our faith in Christ, but we can turn our suffering over to Him. Scripture instructs us to come to God "Casting all your care upon him for he careth for you (1 Peter 5:7). Notice the verse puts no conditions on our cares - it says cast "all your care" on God. God accepts all of our suffering, whatever its origin. He takes ownership of the pain we entrust to his keeping.

By placing our suffering in the Lord’s hands, we are saying, "God, I cannot fix this. I am helpless. I am totally dependent on you." This act of surrender releases God to do whatever He pleases in us, through us, and for us in our suffering. There is great freedom in letting go of our cares and letting God work. And if we allow Him, God will make our suffering into something useful and life-giving - for others and for us. That is His way. He uses our ruins.

Our pain and mistakes become valuable materials in the hands of the Lord. Remember the promise of Isaiah: "He will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the Lord" (Isaiah 51:3b).

Perhaps the most important truth we can learn in suffering of any kind is that, however we have arrived at our condition, God lives with us in our experience. He does not leave us alone to get by - even if we are suffering consequences we created for ourselves. Scripture reads, "He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU" (Hb 13:5).

The Psalmist wrote, "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted (Ps 34:18). It is sometimes hard to imagine God forgiving us for our sin, let alone sticking with us and helping us clean up our mess. But, again, let’s go back to what Isaiah says of God: ‘The Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins (Is 51:3a). God loves us in our ruins. He is with us in our ruins. He is working in our ruins. Our ruins become places of hope in the eyes of God, for He sees their potential.

Ruth Graham - "In Every Pew Sits A Broken Heart"