*A BROKEN HEART AND CHANGE OF PLANS*
Good Friday with Jesus
24th February, 2022.
Genesis 6:5-8 NLT - The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. ⁶ So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. IT BROKE HIS HEART. ⁷ And the LORD said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I AM SORRY I EVER MADE THEM.” ⁸ But Noah found favor with the LORD.
God made us to love us and was expecting so much love from us in return. But at a point, like in Noah’s say, he realised how unrealistic His expectations from humans were. They had become so corrupt they just couldn’t love Him or anyone back. God experienced a real heart break and he became so sorry.
When you get to a point of heart break, you realise that you cannot expect so much from another person like you thought they could give back just because you said you love them. Just like God, every heart break can warrant a change of mind and plans. You must be ready to change your mind about some people when you realise that your efforts of love are not going anywhere with them. God changed his mind concerning humans. He redecided our lifespan, for instance. He decided to spoil all creation that He had ever made. This characteristic is important for us to learn about God. God changes His mind about things. We must also not be cast-in-stone type of people. We must be realistic to change our minds about how far we would like to go in our relationships with people.
However, this scripture does not end in too sad a way. The Bible says, “But Noah found grace in the sight of the Lord”. God could not go right on with His plans of destruction because there happened to be a flag of mercy waving at Him from Noah’s house. Noah was a man of faith and He proved his righteousness by building the boat that saved his ark and all the animals that God had wanted to destroy. He lived out the grace He received from God by building something that outlived the wicked world he found himself in.
Hebrews 11:7 NLT
It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith.
Because of Noah’s obedience, God’s broken heart was somehow healed. A broken heart can be very unrelenting in carrying out a back-to-sender wicked plan. Yet the way to heal a broken heart is to have some obedience to God showing up somewhere.
If your heart is broken, chances are that God’s heart is broken too. If you want to change your mind about a loved one who is unyielding, chances are that God wants to change His mind too and destroy what was formally built. But God can fix things only if you are prepared to obey the plan He shows you if you ask Him. You find grace in God’s eyes by showing that you are willing to build a flood- surviving ark! The grace of God establishes you and makes you a survivor. So,when your heart gets broken, don’t just change your mind according to your own understanding of things. Be prepared to use your broken heart to follow God’s plan for your life and not your own plan. A broken heart is a best place to start if you want to live a life of obedience to God.
Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT - Trust in the LORD with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
⁶ Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.
When God’s heart was broken concerning us, He sent Jesus who obeyed Him fully, even though He did want to suffer the shame and the pain. But He did not follow His own will, but rather God’s will. You can be the reason why salvation, mercy and grace comes to you
