Completely Broken
28. Jun, 2010 
7 Comments
…so I say, “My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the Lord.” Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. – Lamentations 3:18-23
The vase has a date with the floor, and the vase is running late. It tumbles from the shelf, spinning out of control, dropping for hours, but headed to the floor nonetheless. Landing on its head, the vase cries in pain as cold marble refuses to give in to the force of the fall. Splitting into two pieces that shatter into more, the pain of the vase is multiplied in the numbers of the pieces. After what seems like eternity, the dust finally settles, the smoke finally clears, and the pieces finally cease. Segmented. Crushed. Humbled. Broken.
That’s me.
I’m the vase. I’ve been spiraling towards the floor for quite some time now. After years of falling, I’ve finally arrived for my date with a cold, unforgiving floor. I’m shattered. I’m busted. I’m broken. But by the Grace of God, I’m not beyond repair.
Here’s the deal: I am currently faced with the biggest giant of my life. Every aspect of my being seemingly hit a dead zone. I’m shattered while the giant is shining. I’m humbled while the giant is humiliating me. I am literally surrounded in every area of my life by a convicting, conniving enemy, but my hope is in the caring, capable Savior Who has the enemy on a very short leash. I can definitely relate to Jeremiah.
God’s people had once again forgotten about Him, so God allowed their enemies to remember them. Their cities and temple was destroyed, along with their courage and strength. They were learning the same lesson that I am: God can easily allow that which you’re created to conquer to creatively conquer you. If you search through the Old Testament, you’ll discover one frightening truth: the only time God’s people lost was when they abandoned God. This was one of those times. They were at the mercy of their enemies.
But they were still under the Grace of their God.
Jeremiah weepingly wrote, ‘I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of His wrath. He has driven and brought me into darkness without any light; surely against me He turns His hand again and again the whole day long’ (Lamentations 3:1-3). He metaphorically declared his bones were broken (Lamentations 3:4), body surrounded (Lamentations 3:7), cries went unheard (Lamentations 3:8), and hunted by God Himself (Lamentations 3:10). Both his endurance AND his hope from the Lord perished (Lamentations 3:18). Reading his account will cause you to understand why this book is called Lamentations; it’s enough to make the strongest man cry. Then, the amazing happens. Without warning, totally out the blue, the clouds are ripped into shreds by an undeniable, irresistible light. We call it Grace.
But this I call to mind, and therefore have I hope: the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
The same glorious hope from Heaven that blinded Jeremiah to his struggles and caused him to stare at His Savior is capturing me in its loving grip as well. I may be broken in pieces, but I’m still in the Potter’s hands. He’s molding me, making me, shaping me, and reconciling me as His own.
While He’s working, I must keep quiet. I must be still. I mustn’t move, because the Physician is at work. As such, I’m stepping away from Social Networking for a while. No Twitter, no Facebook, no FourSquare, no Social Networking whatsoever. I’ll still write blog posts and proclaim this glorious Gospel as He allows, and I’m setting my blog to automatically update Twitter and Facebook to keep you informed. Karsten, however, will not be tweeting. Don’t worry, I’ll be back. I just need quiet time away from distractions so I can focus on Jesus. The giants that I face will die, and I will be freed from this bondage when our sovereign God sees fit. In the meantime, my hope is the same as Habakkuk: in wrath, God remembers mercy (Habakkuk 3:2).
While I’m away, please pray for me. I need the Lord and your prayers more so now than ever, so please don’t stop praying. Feel free to comment on my blogs, retweet them, Facebook Like them, email them, whatever. I’ll do my best to reply to everyone once God allows me to come back, but my focus is on God’s sovereign plan, not proper blog etiquette.
Why am I choosing to leave Social Networking momentarily versus fasting from food? Well, I never said I’m not doing the ‘traditional’ fast, too. Here’s the thing about Twitter/Facebook, though. I use Twitter and Facebook as a platform to preach the Gospel, but the problem is I’m spending too much time preaching the Gospel and not enough time letting the Gospel preach to me. I can’t adequately proclaim Jesus if I spend more time proclaiming than I do listening. I don’t want to be one of the people who repeatedly interrupts God in the middle of His sentence to tweet what He just told me. Every revelation you get for your life in this season isn’t intended for you to share in this season. Some things aren’t intended for you to share at all; they’re just for you.
So again, pray for me, fam. I’m praying for you, and I love you all. Remember the best thing about being broken:
God will never leave you there. He’s our Hero.
photo credit: guitargoa
Wow! God is so faithful! I, too, am broken but I am now comforted by the thought that somehow when we reach our lowest point, as Jeremiah had, our gracious God begins to whisper truth into our hearts. His compassion never fails. I have hope based on the unfailing love of God! Nat, I can't even really properly express how this post has reached my heart. Brother, I love you, I'm praying for you and I await the splendid masterpiece that the Potter is creating! He is our Hero, indeed! Please continue to blog; your artistry with proclaiming the word of God is simply…beautiful. I needed this! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
It's all God's sovereign Providence, Talisha. I'm encouraged and humbled to know that God can even use my brokenness to encourage others. I'm praying for you.
Good word Karsten. I'm sure you'll be back, and better for having left for a while. Thanks for sharing!
My recent post CS Lewis on desire
I will, Gabe, in Jesus’ Name. Don’t be a stranger in the meantime!
Good man. I’ll see you soon! May our God continue to lead, repair and love you to where He needs you to be. Love ya man! Wendie k
I’m in the Potter’s Hands, Wendy. That’s the best place we can be!
Hi Karsten I came across your post on cell phones via Pastor Justin Cox and I read this article that completely confirms your recent position to fast from social media. Hope you're encourage by it be blessed and know it's such a good thing you're doing. http://www.theresurgence.com/justification_by_twi...