Few things make our hearts more restless than fractured relationships. Whether through divorce, betrayal, or prolonged mistreatment, when we’re hurt by someone we love, our hearts are broken. David laments, “Reproaches have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none.” He was being shunned and belittled by people, and couldn’t find any comfort or rest from the pain. And, it broke his heart.
When our hearts are broken and wrung out by relational despair, the Heavenly Father invites us to go to him. Perhaps you know that. You know God loves you even when (it seems) no one else does. You don’t doubt that he draws near “to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” But what does that mean? What does it look like to go to God or for him to draw near? Well, one writer has said that prayer is the way we “turn theology into experience.” In other words, when we pray, we practice what we preach.
When I was in seminary, one of my spiritual formation professors introduced me to Lectio Divina (it means divine reading). This prayer practice offers four movements that I think are a really helpful structure for the brokenhearted.
Lectio (Read)
Let’s read Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Read that first a few times through, change your pace, notice your breathing. Notice what word or phrase holds your attention. Then read the verse one more time.
Meditatio (Reflect)
Read Psalm 34:18 again, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” What does this tell you about God? What does it say about his character? Why is that important for you to remember today? How does his mercy, love, and grace meet you in your need?
Oratio (Respond)
Read Psalm 34:18 again, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Now, consider what lies this passage exposes. Write down the lie, and write down the truth. Think about what sin or shame is revealed through this verse. Write a short prayer of confession, naming both your sin (or shame), asking for God’s help to respond in righteousness.
Contemplatio (Rest)
Let’s read Psalm 34:18 one more time, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Now, just sit in silence for 5-10 minutes. Listen. Pay attention. Resist the urge to hurry, make a plan, or prepare for the next thing. Simply rest in the truth that God is with you, he is close to you, and he loves you.
Prayer doesn’t always bring instant healing. But it always points us to our Healer. Specifically, David’s lament and brokenheartedness point us to Jesus. He endured every relational despair on the cross. Most profoundly, his own Father’s distance. Yet, by his great love, he broke down everything that breaks us. Therefore, when our hearts are weary, we can draw close to the one who has already come near.
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Written by Jason C. Helveston
Psalm 69:20 (ESV). The superscription identifies this as "A Psalm of David." He’s misunderstood by his family (v. 8), mocked by his enemies (vv. 10-12), with "no comforter" anywhere (v. 20). Notably, the church has always read David's words here as pointing beyond themselves to the greater Son of David, who was "despised and rejected" so that the brokenhearted would never have to look for pity and find none (Isa. 53:3; Rom. 15:3; John 19:28-30).
Psalm 34:18 (ESV). All subsequent quotations of the verse are from the same translation.
Timothy Keller, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God (New York: Dutton, 2014), 80.
Lectio Divina ("divine reading") is an ancient practice of prayerful Scripture reading with roots in Origen (3rd century) and the desert monastics, established in Western monasticism by Benedict of Nursia (6th century), and formalized as a fourfold movement - lectio, meditatio, oratio, contemplatio - by the Carthusian monk Guigo II in his twelfth-century work The Ladder of Monks. For an accessible modern introduction, see "Lectio Divina: A Beginner's Guide" (Busted Halo).
