Broken

It is common to hear today, at least in faith circles, that we are broken people living in a broken world. I’ve said it. And I know it is intended as a way to acknowledge hurt and extend grace.

Reflecting on the word “broken” however, makes me pause. Broken, it seems to me, is something that happens to us. Something “breaks” us: grief, tragedy, illness, loss. Something causes a crack in the shiny veneer I like to keep well-polished.

And it sounds somehow nicer to say broken rather than sinful, to say broken rather than making poor choices. But the truth? I don’t need to be fixed or repaired. I need to be forgiven.

So while things happen that are tragic and hard, there are also things happening that are good and right and true. If we are broken, what allows us to hold on to the good and not the bad? What choices do we have?

When we acknowledge sin and sinfulness, we can identify the choices we have, choices for good. Or not for good. We also open the path for forgiveness.

And we can say, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.”