There’s a worship chorus that you might have heard that has a verse that goes like this:

Brokenness, brokenness is what I long for,
Brokenness is what I need.
Brokenness, brokenness is what you want for me.

Can this song be true? Should we long for brokenness? Does God want us to be broken people? What does that mean?

In the Good Friday drama, we met several characters who were going through the process being broken. Naomi felt brokenness and bitter rejection when her father forced her to choose between her family and following Jesus. Her father experienced brokenness when he realized that he had pushed away the very people he cared about the most.

Sadly, it seems that when we are going through tough times the first thing we often try to do is prove to others and ourselves that we are okay... that we can make it on our own. And often we distance ourselves from the very people who want to help us (including God).

In the drama, Naomi’s friend Kim talks about how hurt and broken she felt after her father’s death. Kim thought that because she was a Christian, she had to show everyone that she was okay because she was supposed to have God. But in holding onto this attitude, Kim ended up shutting out everyone who was trying to support and comfort her, including Jesus. However, as Kim worked through her brokenness (with the persistent help of her friend Naomi), she realized that it was okay to feel pain and grief... it was okay to need people... and it was okay to admit her hurts and weaknesses and receive healing from God.

It is often in the depths of our brokenness that God is finally able to get our attention. Consider the apostle Paul in the Bible. Paul was a young man with impressive credentials who thought that he could accomplish anything by his own efforts. Paul even persecuted Christians until he found himself blind and broken and needing change. And this is when Jesus Christ was able to enter in and heal him and change his life (see Acts 9). In 2 Corinthians 12:9, Paul writes that God said to him: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Let us never forget that we are a fallen people in need of God’s healing. The prophet Isaiah wrote about Jesus: "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." (Isaiah 53:5)

It was only mentioned once in the drama, but Naomi’s father is also named Paul. And much like the biblical Paul, it is in the midst of breakdown that Naomi’s dad realizes how much he needs God because he is failing at doing life on his own terms. Naomi’s dad understands that his daughter has discovered something very important in Jesus, and he decides to pursue answers for himself. And ultimately, he experiences healing and is able to lead Naomi back to a place of healing as well.

In scripture Jesus tells us: "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). God doesn’t desire for bad things to happen to us, but inevitably in this life tough times will come our way. However, God will be there in the midst of our brokenness trying to get our attention... to tell us that we don’t need to do life on our own. In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Psalm 147:5 promises "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." I pray that we all will embrace our continual need to invite Jesus to heal our broken pieces.

(Andrea Thomas is from Waterloo.)