How Do We Get A Whole Heart?

“The only whole heart is a broken
heart”—I heard this quoted recently and as the days have passed I
have considered the truth of it. Here are some of my thoughts:

A heart that has been broken is the only one that can truly understand another whose heart has been broken. The supreme example here is Jesus. “He was wounded and crushed for our sins”--Isa 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” His heart was broken so ours could be healed. The Psalmist says in 34:18—“The Lord is near to the broken hearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

We can sympathize with another who
has a broken heart. We can share words of encouragement, a verse of scripture
that has been meaningful to us, but to truly enter into the feelings and
emotions of a person whose heart has been broken, we have to experience a
broken heart ourselves. Have you noticed how God leads you to people who need
the message of hope that you can bring because of your experience of a broken
heart? He doesn’t waste those experiences, but prepares us through them to
share the healing and hope we have experienced through him with others.

When I was a young believer I remember sitting in a meeting where we were sharing verses that had been meaningful to us. One man stood, quoted the following verse and sat down
without comment. “Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the
desert these forty years; to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” My life was forever changed! From that time since, it has given me understanding of why God allows broken hearts—our true hearts are revealed in brokenness! “He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” Brokenness
draws us to God and His Word for true nourishment! How blessed we are to have His Word!

When we have embraced the brokenness we invite Jesus to fill the empty, shattered places in our hearts. And He fills all those cracks and crevices—and heals those bruised and bleeding
places.

Several other Scriptures come to mind in describing what our Lord does in us through our broken hearts:

Job 5:18 “For He bruises, but He binds up. He
wounds but His hands make whole”.

Proverbs 20:30- “Blows that hurt cleanse away evil,
as do stripes the inner depths of the heart”.

Isaiah 30:26 “…the LORD binds up the bruises of
his people and heals the wounds He inflicted.”

Hosea 6:1"Come let us return to the LORD. He
has torn us to pieces but He will heal us; He has injured us but He will bind
up our wounds”.

Jeremiah. 30:17 “‘But I will restore you to health
and heal your wounds’, declares the LORD…

All of these verses reveal to me hat God is in our brokeness! He as a purpose and a plan in it all!

Acts 13:22 says that, “After removing Saul, He made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.' David experienced brokenness so many times in his life, but God used those experiences to give him a heart that desired to do everything He wanted him to do. That is the kind of heart I desire, don’t you?

In Ezekiel 36:26 God promises: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” This is what God is accomplishing in our hearts through brokenness!

And I love Matthew 5:8, where Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. He is purifying our hearts so we can SEE HIM in all the circumstances of our lives! Praise HIM!!!!

Finally, we are commanded in Deuteronomy 6:5-6 to “Love the LORD your God with all
your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Through our broken hearts He alone brings healing so we can truly love Him with our HEARTS MADE WHOLE BY HIM!