everything is broken...however

All of us live in a broken world and deal with hardship, struggle, and pain. This is not unique to us nor are we somehow or for some reason singled out as God's target for punishment because we experience challenges. 

You may have seen the bumper sticker that says "sh*t happens." This is a crass but accurate way of saying we experience unpleasant things in life. Suffering is simply part of living in a fallen and broken world. This crude bumper sticker reveals that on some level even the world gets this. 

Not only is our world broken but we are broken; every one of us... no exceptions. A primary indication is we all have an endless longing and need to be valued, accepted, approved, loved, and fully embraced. A longing designed to be satisfied by the Source of life and love. 

We are all in ²need of healing and restoration for not being loved and cherished, no matter how well-off we may think we are or appear to be. 

Being designed for great love creates a great void when absent that love. And this is simply because we have walked away from the Source of love and life, God himself. 

Some may not feel this kind of longing and will object saying they have never walked away from God. They simply just don't care or have any interest. If anything, they might say God has walked away from them. 

But if God is who He claims to be, to say you don't care or won't take the time to explore this, in effect is because you have walked away. 

God says he loves you. Have you explored this claim, what it means, if it's true or how it might be? 

He also claims to be the Creator and Provider of all things. Do you acknowledge this claim? Have you explored whether either of these claims -- and many others -- have merit? 

If true, these claims are not insignificant... not by any stretch of imagination! Should you ignore them? If you have not seriously -- since they are serious claims -- explored them, and they turn out to be true, you have in effect walked away from God, not to mention doing so to your own loss. 

To illustrate, if I offer you a million dollars and you thumb your nose at me and never seek to determine whether my offer is real or not -- when it actually is -- what would you call it if you didn't explore this offer? 

The issue isn't the actual offer -- which we are saying is absolutely real, for sake of illustration - it's your not believing it to be true or at least checking it out to confirm if it is or isn't. This only means for you, the offer is not real when in truth it actually is.  

The fact that we also think we are going through a unique hardship and having a pity party as a result only speaks of how self-obsessed, alone/separated/isolated all of us truly are. Because our relationship with God is severed - and therefore nonexistent - it results in all other things and relationships being broken. 

At a very deep level, we all long to connect with someone who sees us warts and all and still loves us. A kind of love with no strings attached or demands put upon us. Yet we seek this from others who can never truly and fully love us this way - which is why we hide our darkest, most shameful secrets (I am sure you can think of some) even from those closest to us. We long to be loved at a level in which we don't have to pretend and be concerned about hiding our true broken selves but are free to be who we really are and still be fully accepted. 

A solution that far exceeds the problem

The beauty of all of this is the all-wise and powerful Creator of all things stepped into our world of brokenness and pain as one of us i.e. as a human being, so he could take on the ultimate pain and suffering of rejection, ridicule, persecution, and hatred - not to mention God poured out his full judgment for the rebellion of mankind (including our own) onto Christ, his eternally beloved Son. This led to and resulted in Christ's death - when he, in fact, deserved none of this. He did this so he could one day free us from all the pain and suffering of this broken world. A world we broke, but he came to fix. Death (his) occurred to bear the consequences of our breaking things and the hurt and pain it caused to others, not to mention the pain to ourselves. 

He also did this knowing fully the condition in which he would find us. Jesus died for us so he could reunite us to the Father knowing we never did or could ever do enough to equal the level and extent of love he rightfully deserves and showed us. Yet he knew all of this and did it anyway. He didn't do this out of a need to be loved in return but out of the fullness of love that he is. His love is that great. 

What does this tell us about his love; that he is willing to give more than he could ever receive back? What kind of love is this that compelled Christ to set aside the very love of his Father he had known from all eternity past so others might have it? What does this tell us about the greatness (largeness) and abundance (overflow) of the heart of God and his Son?

Christ didn't do this so he might gain something from it for himself. He already had the Father and the perfect fullness of His love. There was nothing he needed; nothing we could add. He already had it all. In fact, he experienced just the opposite of gaining when he set aside something - the unobstructed communion with his Father - which is infinitely valuable and glorious, so he could make this happen for us.

What he did gain however is the joy of knowing others would know this very same love of his Father that he knew and has always known. He delighted in the anticipation of our delight in His Father, who is also the ultimate delight of Christ's heart.  

The love between He and His Father was so great and delightful for Him that He longed for others to experience it along with Him. He was compelled to share it. He simply did not wish to keep this love of and for the Father to (or for) Himself.

His longing to share was so great He sacrificed (set aside) his own experience of that love for a time so He could share it with others that we might share in it together with Him throughout eternity. 

Can you imagine such a love as this!? This was (and is) the love of God in and through Christ for you. This is what is meant when we are told that God so loved the world He gave us His only Son. The Son of His affections from all eternity past.

This is how great His love for us is and the basis for the promise and hope of fully participating in this love without interruption one day for all who trust Jesus.

Do you trust him?

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¹The reality is hardship and pain are not supposed to happen. Though it may be the common experience for all, it is an aberration, not a part of our original design, nor will it be a part of the future experience for those who are in Christ. 

²As we plug into God and his infinite love for us, our longings are redirected toward him and our need for other love(s) subsides. The more we plug in, the less we feel the need to be affirmed (loved) by others.  Once we are in his presence and fully plugged in, a constant sense of value and love (i.e. glory) in Him will be an ever-increasing part of our existence.