Oldies and Broken Hearts

Music is one of my favorite things on this earth.  Even as a little girl I loved to sing and to hear my dad or mom play on the organ or piano.  I was a teen-ager in the 1960’s and listened to the latest music on my parents’ old wooden radio cabinet that stood about 3 1/2” tall in my room.  Discovering the Beatles and Beach Boys and Motown music was magical.  We could’t wait to hear the latest hits from our favorite groups.  As I now listen to those “oldies” I realize that a large number of those songs told of broken hearts and rejection.  It’s a common theme even in today’s music.  The reason must be because relationships are important to us and we thrive when we are loved and we die a little inside when people leave or reject us, and that can be a friend or lover hurting us by deserting us or through death as well.  Hearts break for a lot of reasons, but the result is the same...grief and deep hurt.



The good news is that Jesus came to heal the broken-hearted.  It’s one reason He was sent here.  It’s the result of accepting His love into our hearts and following him day by day according to his word.  Often our gut reaction to pain of this type is to run and/or hide.  To try to avoid future hurt we strive to protect ourselves and we build walls.  But that only prevents us from receiving love and healing.  It’s been said that you can’t heal a deep wound by placing a bandaid on top.  It has to be cleaned out and some sort of medication has to be administered which is often painful. (my mother was raised on a farm and they would put rubbing alcohol on cuts, which she did for us also and boy, did that burn!) But going through that painful experience is what helps bring the healing.  Leaving the cut or abrasion alone allows bacteria to grow and cause infection.  Our hearts are like that.  We need to go to our Creator and pour out our grief and pain to him so he can clean the wound and apply his mercy, compassion and love.  Trying to be strong and handle it on our own will only keep us from experiencing this wonderful, healing balm from our great God.  A friend and pastor once said that people that feel deeply laugh a lot and cry a lot and that’s just how God wants us to go through life - feeling deeply.  I’ve known people who are so guarded that they seldom laugh and don’t allow themselves to cry, but to my way of thinking that’s not really living.  It’s just going through the motions of life.  So take your broken heart to Jesus and let him do what only he can do effectively - heal us from the inside-out.



Psalm 34:14 “The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.  He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted.”