Well, it happened again the other day. We had ordered a brand new bunk bed for our girls. When it arrived, we excitedly opened it up and began assembling it…only to find that one of the bright white boards was broken, split down the middle. Shoot!
It seems inevitable; whenever I buy something “brand new” I discover something wrong with it. Perfectionist that I am, this drives me nuts. I don’t have a problem with imperfections with used things or hand-me-downs; however, when shelling out the extra money for something that is supposed to be new, I really don’t like it when it’s damaged. But it seems like it always is. I honestly can’t remember buying anything without discovering some kind of dent, ding or scratch already on it.
Okay I give up, God, that’s the way it’s going to be. But, is there anything I can learn from this? Is there any point for me to get?
I think there is. I think it teaches us all a very important lesson. Everything and everyone in this world is broken. It’s been that way ever since human rebellion began with the first sin back in Genesis 3. The earth is cursed. So, we can look long and hard to find something or someone that isn’t broken in this world, but we never will. That’s the bad news.
Here’s the good news: God isn’t broken. He is perfect and He sent His Son to insert His perfection back into this imperfect world. Through Christ—and through Him alone—God has provided redemption and reparation for all things (Col 1:19-20).
While I tend to interpret the brokenness around me as a bad thing, it is actually a good thing. It is a good thing because it points me to Him—His wholenesss, His perfection. There is no other place I can take my craving for wholeness and perfection; there is nowhere else it can be satisfied (cf. John 6:35).
Through the brokenness of our world, God is reaching out and sending to us a very important message: “Everything and everyone is broken…except Me!”
Brokenness and imperfection is a part of everything in this world and accepting it helps us find Jesus in it. And this has huge relational implications. It helps us to accept who we are and who everyone else is. It helps us give up on our pursuit of relational perfection among humans and encourages us to look for it in God alone.
I hear evidence of the fruitless pursuit of relational perfection all the time.
I hear it from single people looking for a spouse. “I’m looking for Mr. Right (or Ms. Right). I’m looking for someone who doesn’t have any sexual baggage, or who hasn’t been married before or, who doesn’t already have children.” This of course is another way of saying, “I don’t want somebody broken.”
I hear it from parents. “I don’t want my kids to be corrupted by the bad, bad world. I’m not going to let my kids make the same mistakes I made. I don’t want them to screw up. I don’t want them to try drugs or alcohol or to get pregnant. I don’t want them to get broken.”
I hear it from church hoppers. “I’m looking for a church that does preaching right and worship right and community right. I’m tired of listening to hypocritical pastors and performance driven worship teams and seeing church people mistreat each other.” In other words, “I don’t want a church that is broken.”
We all understand what these feelings are like, don’t we? And we certainly shouldn’t wish failure or moral disaster upon anyone, but we must not forget what God tells us. The fact of the matter is, everyone is broken.
Even if this brokenness escapes your notice for a time, be patient, it will show up. Your spouse, or future spouse, is broken. Your kids are broken; they were born that way (Ps 51:5). Your church is broken because it’s filled with broken people. Accept it, and look for Jesus in it.
In search of a mate? How about this: instead of trying to find one who isn’t broken, find one who is and knows it. And learn to take your brokenness to Jesus together. (Remember, you’re broken too!)
If you’re already married—in which case you know how flawed your mate is—let their flaws point you to Jesus’ flawlessness. Let go of your expectations for them and put your hope in Christ.
If you’re a parent, give up on the goal of trying to keep your kids from getting broken. Teach them that they are broken, and point them to Jesus.
Are you in search of a church? Rather than looking all around for the perfect church, look for one where the imperfection isn’t covered over but put right out in the open where Jesus is. Look for a church where human sinfulness is exposed and where Christ’s sinlessness alone is extolled. Look for a church where the need for redemption of people is constantly made obvious and where the provision of redemption in Jesus is constantly deemed glorious.
Embrace God’s story of redeeming and repairing broken people through Jesus for His glory. If you belong to Him, it’s the story of your life and it’s the story you’ll be celebrating for the rest of your existence.
Remember, the perfect and whole Christ is coming back and when He arrives we will know perfect wholeness forever… “we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is” (1 John 3:2)…Until then, embrace the brokenness, because it’s the best you’re going to get!