Broken People

I just finished reading a really good book called Wisdom Hunter. It was quite thought provoking I must say. One of the main messages I got from the book was this: there are broken people all around us who need God, but many times the facade that many Christians put up pushes these broken people away. We try to look like polished, got-it-all-together type of people. If we are honest with ourselves, we are all once broken people. The only difference between Christians and the rest of the world is that Christ the Carpenter of Lives has repaired our brokenness. Us as Christians have exactly what is needed to cure a broken life...yet many times we are so consumed with our own lives and struggles and junk that we turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to the thousands and thousands of people crying out around us. I'm not minimizing anyone's battles, I understand that life is hard, but one thing I've found is that my problems seem less earth shattering when I focus on other people. When my thoughts are turned outward to others, my ears are opened to their stories and pleas for help, and my eyes opened to the opportunities God provides for healing, the less I worry about the things that plague my own life. I'm going to commit to being more observant of people. Everywhere I go I will look for signs of brokenness. I will tune my ears to hear the cries for help. And I will offer the hand that could be the hand that saves a life. A person who is dying inside can be walked passed hundreds of times in a day because people's eyes are closed. They have tunnel vision. Their focus is on their schedules, their hobbies, their objectives...I don't want to have tunnel vision. I want to have world wide vision. Christ's vision was perfect. 20/20. He was constantly attentive to the people around him...so much so that he would lose sleep over it. One of the most beautiful characteristics that God put in humans is the ability to empathize with each other. Don't waste this gift. All of the experiences in your life can be used to encourage, relate, and empathize with someone else experiencing the same thing. Use whatever pain you've endured to comfort someone else. Don't waste the pain and hardships that have molded you into who you are...given you wisdom that can be passed down.
Everyone has a story. Tell people yours, and let them tell you theirs. I think if we all do this we will find that the phrase "no one understands what I'm going through" is a statement that could be removed from everyone's vocabulary.