The Broken Way

Hi, friends!  I've been reading from a new book by Ann Voskamp entitled The Broken Way.
For those of you who are not acquainted with Ann, she is a farmer's wife. She is so much more - a mother, an author, a speaker, a woman of God - but in this book, she talks a lot about the brokenness that naturally occurs all around her on the farm.  She often speaks of the brokenness of a seed in order for it to grow. She uses this illustration as she compares the brokenness that occurs in our lives, reminding readers that there is no shame in brokenness. Only in brokenness can healing and restoration and new life begin!  These words that I read today spoke to my heart and I wanted to share them with you:

You're guilty, but not condemned. You're busted up, but believed in.  You're broken, but beloved.  Whatever you are caught in, I make you free. Whatever you're accused of, I hand you pardon.  Whatever you're judged of, I give you release.  Whatever binds you, I have broken.  All sin and shame and quilt and lack I have made into beauty and abundance.

That is the type of unconditional love a sinner receives from Jesus. Not judgment and shame. but rather the profoundly loving words, "Go, and sin no more." Thank you, Jesus!