Bring It All

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalm 34:18 (NIV)

Who do you text or call when you’re sad, mad, or just want to complain? If you have a friend who lets you bring “all the things,” hold on to them. When you’ve got someone who knows the deepest, darkest parts of you and still shows up, that’s real.

The Bible teaches that God is real like that. What David wrote in Psalm 34:18 was hard-fought. He’d been in a crazy situation, surrounded by people who wanted to kill him. He was desperate, and to escape, he acted like he was insane! He didn’t need to act any type of way with God, though. Check out verses 15 and 17. David had cried out to God with total honesty in his darkest moment. God’s eyes were on David, His ears were open to hear him, and He was ready to come to the rescue. That’s the point of verse 18. In David’s most soul-crushing moment, God was right there with him to pick up his broken heart and bring him back to life.

The same is true for you. You’ve got someone who knows the deepest, darkest parts of you and still shows up. It’s your choice, though. You don’t get to experience God as that real friend if you don’t ever bring it all to Him. He wants you to know you can trust Him. He loves you.

Faith doesn’t mean pretending everything’s fine. God can handle your very best and your very worst. Your sadness, madness, and complaining? There’s not an emotion you have that will scare God away. It’s actually the opposite. The most powerful worship often comes from the most wounded hearts—as you cry out to Him, He draws near.

• Have you ever disengaged from God because of circumstances that had you feeling sad, mad, or some other hard emotion? Based on Psalm 34:18, why is that the wrong move to make?
• What heart-breaking, soul-crushing circumstance do you need to bring to God?
• Pray to God, who is the most real friend you will ever have. Thank Him for His love and nearness no matter what emotions you bring to Him. Then, go ahead and bring the hard parts to Him, inviting Him to show you His nearness and rescue.