Broken Pinata

A few weeks ago, my friend, Stephenie gave me one of the most thoughtful gifts I have ever received for my birthday-a pinata!.  (I can hear you saying "A pinata?  Are you kidding me?") Yes, a pinata!  She had tied it to the outside awning at our office.  After being given a small bat I began to take aim.  I flailed and swung at the boot pinata with all my might and suddenly it broke open and the contents began to spill to the ground.  It was full of all type of Reese's candy.  It was a chocoholics greatest fantasy.   Upon more careful inspection I began to see that it was not only chocolate that fell to the ground, but also folded and rolled up pieces of paper. 

I took the broken pinata and all my goodies inside and began to unfold and unroll the paper.  Every one of them contained a note of encouragement from a fellow co-worker.  I cried as I went through the notes.  Each one was very special to me.  After some recent struggles it was just what I had needed.  For my birthday, my friend had given me the gift of encouragement!!  What a blessing it was to me!!!!!

That night I brought the broken pinata home with me and God began to show me in my life that I need to be just like the boot pinata--broken.  You see it was not until the pinata was broken that all those good things began to pour out of it.  It had to be broken for me to receive the blessing. God want us to be broken.  Spiritual brokenness is when a Christian is so strongly convicted of our sin and our unworthiness in the presence of a holy and righteous God that we come to Him in repentance-begging for forgiveness.

I am reminded of the passage of scripture from Psalm 51.  David wrote this particular psalm after Nathan had confronted him regarding his adulterous relationship with  Bathsheba and his murder of her husband, Uriah.  David was absolutely broken before God.  David begged God to forgive him, make him clean and renew his heart.  This was a man who wasn't just reciting off a list of sins and just saying "forgive me, God"  without any real repentance.  Instead, David's heart was broken for the sin that he had in his life.

We need to be broken.  We need to not think that we have reached a point that brokenness isn't needed in our lives.   We need never think we have somehow "arrived".  The truth is a s long as we are here on this earth there will be sin in our lives.  We need to be convicted of that sin and experience brokenness before a holy and righteous God.

In Psalm 51:17 David said "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit and a contrite heart."  Not only does God desire our brokenness over our sin, but just like the blessings poured out of the broken pinata-blessing can flow out of our brokenness.  Sin seperates us from God (Isa 59:2) but as we confess and repent of that sin we can experience the blessing of intimacy with God.  We experience not only His grace and His forgiveness but also His presence and fellowship.  Because of such intimacy God begins to mold us into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.  I can think of no greater blessing.

The blessing I received from the broken pinata was fabulous, but the blessings of spiritual brokenness are beyond compare..

I want to close with the words from a song by Sonic Flood.

           Brokenness, brokenness is what I long for
           Brokenness is what I need
           Brokenness is what You want from me.

          So take my heart and form it.
          Take my mind and transform it
          To Yours, to Yours, Oh Lord.