Embracing Wonder: A 5-Week Advent Devotional From Matthew WestSample

Sunday, December 22: Bring Him What Is Broken

It’s probably not going to make the cover of a Hallmark Christmas card, but the truth is that Christmas is actually supposed to be a time when we begin taking inventory of what is broken in our lives. Forget about the broken ornaments, the strings of lights that don’t work, the old tree that isn’t going to survive another season—it is a time to be honest with God about the brokenness in a family, a time to face up to addiction, a time to address the need for healing in our relationships, our communities, and our world.

As we enter the fourth week of Advent, we’re reminded that the Son of Man didn’t come to earth for us to choose to hide in our brokenness, but to acknowledge it and place it in the hands of the Healer. Christmas should be a season where we can be honest with Jesus: “Here is my mess. Here is my wound. I know You are my healer.” God invites you to come home this Christmas before you are healed so you can be healed.

Jesus isn’t going to throw out the broken stuff. He fixes the lights. And the baby in the manger that reaches out to you across eternity right now can heal: the relationship that has been severed for years, the illness that leaves the doctors baffled, the addiction that won’t let go, the wound from the past that still wreaks havoc on your life, the anxious mind, the weary body, the troubled soul. The healing power of Jesus is the very reason the story of the first Christmas is the greatest story ever told. Christmas is a time of returning to the Healer. Jesus’ invitation for you to come home to healing is unconditional. You don’t need to have everything in order. Christmas calls you to bring your mess into His house and lay it at the feet of the Great Physician. May we come home to healing, wait in patience and faith, and let the Healer do what only He can do in our lives this Christmas.

Respond: As you reflect on this fourth week of Advent, think about areas in your life where you need healing. What is one step you can take this week to bring your brokenness before Jesus?

Prayer: Father, I lay what is broken in my life at your feet. I wait for your healing and thank you for the hope you bring through the promise of Christmas.