Elisa Morgan
About the Author

Elisa Morgan was named by Christianity Today as one of the top fifty women influencing today’s church and culture. She has authored more than twenty-five books, and her newest release is The Prayer Coin: Daring to Pray with Honest Abandon (www.theprayercoin.org). Connect with Elisa and her blog at www.elisamorgan.com.

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Comments

  1. I would love to win a copy of this book. I am broken, and parent my children from my own brokenness most of the time. I need to learn that although imperfect and broken, God can still use me. Thanks for offering the giveaway!

  2. Elisa,
    my brokeness is just a result of my own faults. I’ve struggled with purity and the satisfaction in my Now. The season I’m in was almost a season I didn’t want to be so I let men do things with me that weren’t right.
    But God shows me His love in the people who surround me, in His word and in His power.
    Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
    Rosie

  3. Hi Elisa,
    I think as you say everyone is broken in some way myself included. If we don’t have a strong enough faith or being inconsistent with our faith through our lives, why would God want us if we are constantly disappointing him and ourselves? Questions I battle with all my life, BUT to watch a man of strong conviction in his faith, leading his life in the Christian way, attending church all the time I have known him, my whole life was under immense financial pressure with businesses going bust made a mistake that broke a family and friends is totally broken himself it is him that I worry for. your words really hit home with me today. He gets….That people mess up and yet are worthy of respect and love and are never—ever—without hope. God holds each family close, crying with his wounded children, tenderly assembling and reassembling fallen fragments, creating us into better versions of ourselves… It’s good to hear that and be reminded that we are not perfect and GOD loves us all the same. If this is what your book is about I would like a copy for My Father & Mother x

  4. Just like so many of us I come from a broken family. Although my parents didn’t divorce, it was a struggle to be home when my dad was there. You never knew what you will face. I left the house at 17, as soon as I graduated high school. Unfortunately, since broken is all I knew I had many broken relationships culminating with a broken marriage. Finally after so many years and my divorce I am learning that I didn’t deserve this, I didn’t provoke all this… Learning how much my Daddy loves me where I am right now…

    • Wow….that phrase hit me: “I didn’t provoke all of this…” That is beautiful and true. Thank you for sharing your short story. That is so true….

  5. My family and myself could use this book when you descrbed your family I felt we arent the only ones. We have a blended family that doesnt always blend well. My husband who was previously divorced, as am I, was raised in foster care due to addiction and abuse. Your book sounds like it might offersome help and healing for some very deep wounds. Please consider us for a copy of your book.

  6. OH! These words are so very important to me right now….I grew up in a family where we sometimes wished my parents would have diviorced = it would have been better for the family at times. Mom is an adult child of an alcoholic family and grew to be an alcoholic herself as we got older, Dad just grew up in a family where no one really communicated. And I was one who (still) need to keep myself guarded. It is hard for me to “let go” and it is hard to have fun, I was always taking care of myself or seemingly taking care of my younger sister. The one thing my parents really did right is guide us to counseling when we were younger and get us into a wonderful church family. Even with all the brokeness I am a stronger person and I am proud of how I have overcome so much to be as “well-adjusted” as I am. But with my own 3 children I cannot help but see how my own brokeness is damaging…I am always worrying if I am going to make my own eldest daughter feel like I did as a growing teen and young adult. I pray that God will bring my children on His path “in spite” of me. And now my own marriage strugges and I cannot help but think it wold be better for everyone if we were separate. All these broken pieces make up my life. Thank you for sharing yoiur brokeness…God sent this to me right now.

  7. I love the title of your book! Broken, yep that’s me. In 2000 my husband and I became parents for the first time. Sweet baby girl. Healthy and fun. In 2001 she was misdiagnosed which resulted in her going into cardiac arrest and left her with a severe brain injury. Life changed, it broke on many levels. Our family dynamics changed. She needed full care. Yes God always provided but her life was tough. She struggled with sickness a lot. Confined to a wheelchair, feeding tube and unable to talk. Our second home was our Children’s Hospital where “everyone knew our names”. Don’t get me wrong, Gods glory shinned in her life. She impacted lives in an incredible ways, but this mamma heart was and is broken. Our sweet girl went home to glory last March, we lost her. She fought the good fight and I am confident she is whole, running, laughing and with Jesus, but our family is broken. We are walking one step at a time. I am finding beauty in my brokenness. That’s where the light of Christ shines…through the cracks! She was a warrior! She fought hard. She is loved and never forgotten! I would love to be blessed with a copy of your book. Thank you for sharing!!

    • Tricia,

      Prayers that God was and still is near to you. I pray you feel His loving arms surround you and hold your momma’s heart.

      Father God,

      Please come near to Tricia and her family. Help them to heal from the death of their daughter. Shower them with your love and mercy!

      AMEN! 🙂

  8. brokenness…it comes to many church families…sometimes by choice or by one person. The myth that Christians should not live in brokenness also brings on another chain of reactions, that can last for more than his/her lifetime. I learned that it is easier to hide or cover up, than to share the reality. I would appreciate this book, as it will help uncover the secrets, despair And pain that affects siblings, children and spouses, and how generations can be affected. I would like to help end this cycle. Thank you Elisa for sharing your brokenness…..like a broken shell, there is still beauty to be seen!

  9. I am broken. The evidence that stands out most right now is my OCD…I mean, what kind of college student is terrified and shies away from sitting next to her best friend?

    • A broken friend. And broken friends can be very good friends precisely because they are broken – and aware of their great need for Jesus. (Like me and my broken friends!)

  10. Apart from Christ, brokenness can become, sadly, a family heritage. Thank you for your words that fight against this fallen way of living.

  11. This sounds like a wonderful book. I think many of us fall for the idea that we can make a perfect family. After all, it is what most of us desire most. But as you point out, most of us find out sooner or later, this is not possible, because we are all broken. But. . .Praise God, we do not have to be perfect. He can, and does, use our brokenness to make us anew.

    I would love to hear more about what you say on this subject.

  12. I grew up in a broken family. I thought I would have the “perfect” family when I had my own. My expectations led to depression. Thank you for reminding me of the beauty of broken.

    • I pray that you have reached out for help with your depression. It can be so heavy. Relief does come when we turn from the mythology of perfection and embrace the reality of who we are and how Jesus loves us so – just that way. Love to you today!

  13. Broken from more than just divorce of my parents. There are so many things that can break us and I sometimes wonder how people still get along.

    • It seems to me that we get along worse when we hide our brokenness from each other and do better when we are honest and carefully reveal our broken places, and God’s love for us even there. Brokenness can create compassion which can connect us in surprising ways.

  14. Definitely broken. Shards, bits, pieces. In so many ways, so many places. Thank you for writing a needed book. We will ache on for perfect {aka God} and never find it as long as we refuse Him. God have mercy on us all.

    • Don’t you think our ache for perfect is our ache for Jesus? He alone is “perfect” because he uniquely was broken for us so that we might be made whole through him.

  15. Growing up as a pastor’s daughter, I loved my life…I loved the Lord and all that he blessed us with. It never occurred to me that we would become what my father counselled so many other families through. I believe that my father was a valuable member of God’s team. One that Satan sought after and waged battle against daily. To say that Satan won would go against everything my faith holds true…but the story of victory is one that I take one day at a time. I remember thinking the same thing as a teenager…I will do things right…my family will not be broken…unfortunately the idea that it was me that was going to be the reason that my family would be different is at the crux of why brokenness would return 37 years later. Thanksgiving is a day that most families celebrate with those they love, giving thanks for all their blessings. While for me, it is a reminder of my father’s wedding to his second wife…it is a reminder of the day my daughter’s secret addiction was revealed and life as we knew it vanished. It’s funny how the illusion of a perfect life vanished…while being replaced with truth. The truth we live today, although mixed with many broken pieces, prepared us for a new level of perfection. The day of perfection may be nearer than we know…and ultimately it is the rejoining of the pieces that now let the light shine through a little brighter…that help make this worth sharing. My students could use a book that they can relate to. I share with them my story…hopefully placing before them my broken pieces…unlocking my secrets of a past that was just an illusion.

    • There is a whole chapter on thankfulness in this book…God has needed to teach me how to thank him in MANY “no thanks” moments. It’s stunning how he can actually inhabit our thanks – and change us through thanksgiving…

  16. wow. the video is gorgeous and so compelling. i have no doubt that the book will be the same. broken and spilled out. He for us. because He knew we would need hope and redemption for our own brokenness

    thank you ….

  17. You are not alone in your brokenness. I struggle with an irrational fear of abandonment, due to my dad’s brokenness. The trying harder and shouldering the blame has been almost impossible for me to get through.

  18. I am from a broken home from an early age–parents divorced when I was two, and I have never even known my dad although he lived just a few hours from us. I’ve seen him maybe 5 times in my 28 years. I’m glad my marriage has been healthier than my parents, and we can communicate, but the daddy issues–only from an absent father–not painful memories of someone who was there, have resurfaced. They always do.

    • Indeed. We all came from a dad in one way or another and I believe we all long for that connection. God loves your broken dad – and broken you. He uniquely gets a father’s longing for a child (giving Jesus to die for us) and a child’s longing for his father (Jesus calling out from the cross.)

  19. This book sounds very interesting. I know a lot of people who struggle with the idea of perfect and what that should look like in a family. I would love to read and share this book.

    • Absolutely I hope you can! It’s STUNNING how much silly effort we put into the impossible and ignore the real everyday opportunities to reveal our brokenness and bring it to God to reform. Love that!

  20. Perfectionism is my biggest obstacle. It is so hard to overcome. I look forward to your book and its help.

  21. You are not alone! As a new wife who came from a solid upbringing of Christian parents who modeled a healthy relationship, I figured it would be more than easy to have the “perfect marriage.” No more than a week after we got back from our honeymoon I quickly realized how selfish and broken I am as I struggled to adapt to living with a new roommate and starting our lives together. I definitely am very blessed to have an incredible husband, but to say that our relationship is perfect would be a lie. I continuously struggle with laying aside my selfish desires to be a better wife to my husband. Thank you for the encouragement and truth!

  22. I am wondering if possibly the brokenness is beautiful because it sends me running to Jesus ?! And that is where I find a home within Him of love that can then be filling me up to flow out all over the broken places! Thank you for sharing your heart and the beauty He has given you through your story . No doubt your story will resonate with all;)

  23. I’m an avid reader, and it’s not uncommon for me to read a book and then pass it along and then go buy 2 or 3 more copies for others. I have friends who are hurting and would benefit from your book. There are hurting families all around me who just need Jesus to show up and show out! No family is perfect and we are all broken without Jesus. I would love to read your book and then be able to give it to others.

    Thanks for the offer.

  24. Although my own parents are still married, my husband comes from a divorced marriage, with steps and half siblings galore. It’s hard for everyone to figure out how to relate, how to forgive, how to live grace. I would love to read and share this book.

    • Yes, there is great freedom in the revelation of our brokenness. But also, we must move with great care. Life is messy and we can hurt each other without intending to do so. I think this book would help you!

  25. I am broken in so many ways yet God never gives up on me. Divorced parents, my own divorce, anger issues…you name it. Cannot wait to read this book!

  26. You’re not alone. Last Friday I was asked to become a leader in my recovery program. I was so excited. Last year at this time I was nearly ready to throw in the towel. I see how God can turn ashes into beauty. But, the attacks started Friday afternoon – “Who do you think you are to be a “leader” in anything?” “You’re still a mess” “You need to clean up some more before you accept that type of role”, etc. etc. BUT, I remember the sign at the altar of our recovery room “NO PERFECT PEOPLE ALLOWED!” and God reminded me that I don’t have to be perfect to accept this role. If I waited till perfect, I’d be waiting my whole life. Thanks for writing about your brokenness. Have you seen the Sacred Scared series by Momastery? It’s awesome!

    • No kidding! Great stuff! What HUGE freedom there is in being imperfectly human! Rather than dis-qualifying us, our brokenness when placed in Jesus’ hands can actually further qualify us. WOOT!

  27. I’m 46 years old. My parents divorced when I was a newly married 21 year old. And I can say I’m still struggling with some of the broken pieces of that reality. Thanks for writing…would love to read your book!

    • Oh I think you would so relate! When our lives come undone, we come undone and that’s often we we first – or newly – see ourselves as we really are.

  28. My family growing up was a whirlwind of brokenness and still is. But we hide it and conceal it from the world. I am ready to raise my voice, take off the mask and helpfully let the world know that they aren’t alone. Reading this might help me take the step to write and start the blog I feel God is prompting me to do.

  29. 8 yrs. of battling cancer has broken me. Raising grandchildren has been a joy/struggle but their brokenness has broke my heart. Look forward to reading your book.

    • Precious one, you are not beyond God’s reach. He longs to reform the broken pieces and to reveal his love in and through you. You are deeply loved by him.

  30. I had a difficult relationship with my dad. He had a difficult relationship with his mom, who had a difficult relationship with her dad. I thought I was doomed to continue the cycle, so I decided I wouldn’t marry or have children. Thankfully, God showed me that things could be different. Certainly not perfect! 😉 I do struggle because of my own past and the troubled relationships with family. But, with God’s help, things for my kids can be better.

    • Seeing hope in the broken is often the key to surviving and then thriving. God brings beauty in the broken. He shines his Being through the cracks of our brokenness.

  31. Broken… I am so glad I’m not alone… Blaming myself, glad I’m not the only one. My mother came from a broken home and I was blessed to have both parents raise me… My father passed away when I was twenty and my mother became a widow at 52. Life breaks and yes it becomes so messed but one thing remains… God’so faithfulness … He is always there… He mends the broken pieces…. He fills in the gaps…. He fixes the broken… I’m so grateful….

    • In Japan, there is an artistic technique used to repair pottery using gold. It’s called Kintsumi and it is believed that the broken pieces are stronger after the repair than they were before…

  32. Thank you so much for sharing!! I have had so many of the same thoughts and problems. As a single mom overcoming so many things, I have finally learned that I am indeed broken and am figuring out how to deal with that. Some days are better than others, but knowing I am not alone helps so much. Your words really touched me today. Thank you for being brave enough to share your broken self with my broken self. 🙂

  33. If we have Jesus we are never alone! What I keepy focus on when the world around me is attacking or following apart

  34. I think we are all broken. The moment we accept that fact and realize we are all broken God can use us.

  35. Being a pastor’s wife and mama of 2, I have learned that I have to accept that no matter what people think, parenting is hard. I can put up all over social media the good times; the bubbles, the dance parties, the homemade playdoh. But that’s not all there is. I have to be authentic. It’s hard.

    • People learn best from us when they watch us LIVE – not just talk about living. When we show HOW we get back up after we fall down, we model the process of our faith. Not just the product.

  36. I would love to have a copy of this book. My family is the perfect picture of broken. My husband comes from major broken, and we struggle with the baggage of broken and the results of this on our family.

  37. If we believe we are not broken we are deceiving ourselves and letting pride rule in our lives. It’s only in our brokenness where we are open to and embracing of God’s grace. The reason Jesus came to earth and let Himself be broken was because we need mending, each and every one of us, and we cannot heal on our own.
    You are not alone, Elisa, none of us are. And, indeed, there is beauty in brokenness.

  38. My mom struggled with alcohol and depression and I tried so hard to fix everything. Keep her happy, get my siblings to school. In doing all this I forget that I to deserved a childhood. I deserved a life to be lived that didn’t need to be controlled all the time. The anxiety nearly broke me and although my husband tried so hard to teach me of my worth I couldn’t believe it. How can I be worth something if I can’t fix everything if I can’t make everything right.

    Even when I came to faith I believed I had to be this perfect person for God to love me.

    When my daughter died I blamed myself, if only became my middle name.

    It’s been a hard journey the last few years ending up with me finally realising that I cannot fix everything. That by trying to fix everything I was also breaking others.

    We do live in a broken world and whilst I need to really understand this I am finally realising it’s not all my fault.

    • Being so necessary for the health of others is exhausting…you know. May God continue to life the weight of false expectations off your shoulders. May he rename you from “if only” to “because she is loved.” May he give you utter assurance that there is no where you can go that he is not there, loving you.

  39. Broken…aren’t we all? And yet…yes some more than others….I would love a copy to help myself as well as my future counseling clients.

    • This book is a great one to hand to a fellow struggler. In my story, they find that they are not alone – that my story is likely theirs too. What comfort. And even more, in OUR stories, there is a God who comes close to convince us we are loved.

  40. I’m broken. I have a father who told me on my 40th birthday that he has never had feelings of love for me and that he needed to tell me that because he could not take it to the grave with him (pancreatic cancer). Thankfully I have a HEAVENLY FATHER who loves me unconditionally.

    • There are no words for such pain. And yes, I share with you the comfort of our heavenly father. May he continue to convince you of his love – yesterday, today and tomorrow. Crazy, isn’t it: he loves broken you AND he loves your broken father. One day may the restoration be complete.

  41. I come from a home that was never together and have been thrown away more times than I can count. When I get to feeling too down, I pray, not only for myself but for anyone else that feels like I do.

    • When we admit and experience our brokenness we are somehow opened up to a new kind of compassion for the brokenness in others. We comfort others with the comfort we ourselves have received. 2 Corinthians 1

  42. Wonderful to read your words. I came from a not broken family, it was as close to perfect as they come. I always wonder why I can’t give that to my children. I have tried so hard, and failed so much. My beautiful children, with such potential, struggle so much. Addiction, anxiety, depression…why?
    I hope. I try not to despair. I try not to blame myself. I try not to compare my life to the ones around me that seem so perfect.
    I try to trust in the Lord.

    • A wise counselor once told me that three forces shape our children: 1 – genetics (which we can’t control) 2 – heredity (which we can only partly control) 3 – free will (which we have no control over at all). Our children make their own choices. We are not responsible for their choices. We are only responsible for our responses to their choices. Love to you today dear mom. You are not alone.

  43. You are most definitely not alone…abuse, abandonment, betrayal, rejection, cancer, addiction…all that, and more, part of my own broken family…thank God for repair, redemption, restoration, recovery…and the relatability of your story here. I look forward to your book, Elisa. Thank you for your brave sharing here today.

  44. Definitely not alone! My 1st family (on earth) broke so they made new ones and they also broke! I grew up and married and have been part of 2 more broken families! I think we are all broken in many ways…Thank God for his LOVE!

    • Someone once said that hurt people hurt people. A hard, but likely true saying. The thing is we all grow up and end up in broken families in one way or another because we are all broken, beginning with Adam and Eve. Hope comes when we understand this is no surprise to God, who allowed his Son to break on the cross for us. God loves the broken enough to die for us.

  45. Broken? Indeed.
    Broken by polio when I was 15 months old. Broken by criticism. Broken by comparison. Broken by infidelity and addiction. Broken as a result of others sin. Broken as a result of my sin. Recently I broke my hip so I am in the recovery and healing process from that. As I have been forced to slow down, to be still, I am learning much about life and about my Heavenly Father.
    One of the toughest things for me is watching my daughter struggle as she raises her two precious little girls. Life is messy. Life is hard. God is good!
    I would love a copy of your book.

    • We who understand we are broken, have been given insight into its beauty. May the hope and love of Jesus shine out of your cracks to be visible to the broken ones around you who also need him so!

  46. Wow, this really seems to hit a nerve with so many…me included. It is hard for me to see the beauty in my brokenness but a dear Sister-in-Christ reminded me that God can use it and me for His glory…and with that I am encouraged and comforted…

    Blessings and thank you for sharing.

    Linda

    • We need each other! We grow weary and even twisted when we are shut off from each other – all too eager to believe the mythology that there is such a thing as a perfect family. We are all broken. And God gets this. And never gives up on us.

  47. My parents divorced when I was eight years old and that with many other issue I have always felt less than. I would love to read this book.

  48. Boy, has God shown me how broken I am. I thought I could craft a perfect family by homeschooling my children and keeping them from the evils of the world. Somehow that evil snuck in anyways. God has shown me there are no guarantees with what I do. He takes care of it all. Thanks for this offer; I would love to win.

  49. You are so right to say that we are all broken – perhaps not for the same reasons – but still broken. No one ever expected my first husband and I to divorce. After all, he was a Deacon, I was the Church Business Administrator, Choir Director and we taught an Adult Sunday school class together. When he left, not only did it devastate my children and me, our church friends and members were hurt too.

    Out of their brokenness, my son’s grades in school went down dramatically and he grew very angry; my daughter got pregnant. But God is faithful and He heals and redeems our hurts, our devastation, our brokenness. What the enemy meant to destroy, God restored. God brought a wonderful Christian man into my life, my children are both doing well and engaged to be married and I have a delightful and loving grandson who will graduate high school in May.

    God can, and will, take your brokenness and make something beautiful to come from it.

  50. I AM A SURVIVER OF INCEST, FROM FONDELING BY MY PATERNAL GRANDFATHER AS FAR BACK AS I CAN REMEMBER–PROBABLY SINCE I WAS A BABY. I ONLY VERY RECENTALLY– AFTER 60+YEARS–HAVE STARTED THINKING OFF MYSELF AS A SURVIVOR INSTEAD OF A VICTIM.

    • Thank you for sharing this painful description. May God continue to convince you that he can bring his beauty from even this broken. He loves you beyond measure. He calls you BEAUTIFUL.

  51. Yep! I’m from a broken family that I tried to hide from others for years! I tried my best when I was blessed with my own family to keep it unbroken! Thankful for His mercy is new everyday! Thankful that my prayer life is more rich today than when I thought I was in control of breaking a horrible cycle! More surrendered, more humble and more grateful that I am His and He ‘gets me’! What a masterpiece of loving strokes and Truth mixed in daily! Thank You Jesus! You are beautiful! And I am Your’s!

  52. For most of my life, I have lived in denial that there was any brokeness in my family. I didn’t like it, refused to address it, definitely didn’t deal with it, and felt like if I could hide it from the outside world, then maybe it wasn’t really there. If we could just send out the “perfect” family Christmas picture each year to all our friends and acquantances, they would ooh and aah over our “perfect” family. I am still in the process of accepting and becoming “okay” with the fact that not only are my children (now adults) not perfect, my husband isn’t perfect, but more importantly, “I” am not perfect. But I can love and still be loved, even and especially in my brokeness. I am humbled and in awe of that. Not quite there yet on walking it out, but starting to grasp the wholeness of the concept….

    • The beauty in broken is yet another “upside down” reality of living with Jesus in this world. Thanks so much for offering hope to others by sharing your words here!

  53. Through counseling this past year, I’ve come to realize that God can use my imperfections, when all I ever wanted to be was the perfect wife and mother. He has shown me that if we were perfect, our family wouldn’t need God. I am so thankful for all He is teaching me.

  54. I come from a broken family; and I try so hard to shield my own children from that pain. Thank-you for the reminder that despite all my attempts no family is perfect.

    • When I’m concerned for the next generations in my family, God reminds me that it is THEIR story. That he will bring beauty from their broken just has he has brought beauty from my broken. How I lean in to this hope!

  55. Yes, broken, different and yet similar. These stories we share, these lives we try to live. . . I’m not sure I have fully realized how broken my family really is. Details and words keep finding their way to the light, and it is in that Light that I try to offer them, try to release them, and accept the Words back that bring hope. . .

    Thank you for your story! We are not alone at all! 🙂

    • Keep reaching up towards the light! As we crack through the brokenness in our beings, reaching for Jesus, he reveals himself even through our cracks. So grateful.

  56. I think there’s a whole generation of broken who grew up and vowed to not make the mistakes of our parents, not realizing we were broken and in need of a different type of “intervention” and rescuing. Now we have a new generation of broken who believe they are entitled because we wanted to give our children what we lacked. I truly don’t believe anyone escapes being broken. If we were perfect, we wouldn’t need God and I never want to perfect if I can’t have my God!! So, bring on the broken because as long as I have God, I know He’ll get me through this life.

    • In our best attempts to do it “right” we can actually end up worshipping our efforts – rather than acknowledging our brokenness which ultimately reveals God’s beauty.

  57. You are so not alone. I come from all kinds of broken….divorce, alcoholism, unplanned pregnancy, addiction, anxiety, abortion, cancer, death, you name it….

    But God is the great Healer and He has made me new!

    I would love to read your book and be reminded that it is He that makes us perfect and our brokenness is what causes us to need Him.

    Bless you!

  58. So many similarities in these stories. Like you, I was always told to “lighten up”. At 55, I am still struggling with relinquishing control. I would love this book as I believe that God is not done with me yet!

  59. It is in the brokenness… our weakness, that HE is strongest. And underneath our fight against our own brokenness are issues of pride and feeble attempts to make ourselves God… self reliance. In this place, we continue to break.

    I found a prayer entry in my journal dated in March of last year and it is me asking God to help me have a heart of gratitude for my brokenness. There is tremendous freedom in accepting our own brokenness and offering it to Him for healing and redemption. And He redeems every. single. thing. Nothing is wasted in God’s economy! Hallelujah!

  60. Even in the brokenness of life, we can let God’s light shine. It’s hard. It’s humbling. It’s painful sometimes. But in the end, it’s necessary. I have heard good things about this book and would love to win a copy to read and share.

    • Thank you for your honesty about the pain. There is no way in, through or beyond brokenness without pain. Snap. And it is the glimpse of the beauty – and the desire to survive to see more – that motivates us to persevere.

  61. I too am broken. My first husband died too young, my daughter divorced after 2 years of marriage to a Christian man, I’ve had a rocky relationship with a step-daughter who 4 months ago had a child outside of marriage and I’ve battled breast cancer. I would love to read this book and share it with other broken women.

  62. As evidenced by so many comments, we are all struggling with brokenness! I struggle with perfectionism and so brokenness can be crippling in my life! I have learned to sit still before the Lord and read the stories in the bible of His broken people redeemed by His love and let that transform my thinking. I can’t wait to read your book – it is just what I need!

    • We are all broken. Every one. Beginning with Adam and Eve. And some how we break others, even when we mean to mend. Hope comes when we know that God bends to our broken. To love us and use us. And to convince us that he will never leave us alone.

  63. I’ve been living life broken all my life. I was born into it. My birth role. I was always molded to lead, to be in charge. I am a only Girl. I am very much like the oldest son and yet I’m the middle (girl)child with two brothers and no sisters except the sister I found out about in 2000 (another conversation for another day). I am 52 years old now and I ain’t no ways tired. I’ve come to far from where I’ve started from. Everytime I ask God to renew my right spirit he does. But, I can honestly say “I’m forced to trust him.” His grace and mercy bought me through. As far as my immediate family everyone is deceased now except me and my two brothers who are very much like my two sons and have been allllll my life. I still have a husband of 24 years and two sons, one 23yrs. old and one 15 yrs.old. When I look back over my life (Broken Life) I could dance, dance, dance. God has been sooo Good soooo Faithful. If it had not been for Jesus the author and finisher of my faith. I would have lost my mind a looooong time ago. I know that I’m blessed to be a blessing so I give my strength away and God always gives me a fresh supply he keeps giving me some more and for that I’m thankful. When I think about his goodness and what he’s done for me ……… sooooo I embrace my broken life. I grow where I’m planted! To God Be The Glory!

  64. Broken! AFter 31 years of marriage, divorced my ex for his alcoholism. He chose it over me. So yes, broken in so many ways…God is gluing me back together one shard at a time, Amen!

    • He will not sweep you up into a dustpan and tinkle you into the trash. He will not waste one element of your pain. God loves the broken and indeed, he uses the broken. Hold on to this.

  65. I am so glad that Jesus came to “bind up the brokenhearted”, that He offers the glue (of His truth, His love, His understanding) to hold us together as we hand over our broken places to Him. Thank you for this reminder today.

  66. I feel as if I’m coming late to the party by way of the broken back door. Growing up, I didn’t feel that my family was broken in the slightest (altho now I realize that we were to some extent), So when I tried to replicate my take on the Normal Rockwell family I assumed I would be mothering, all went fine until I had my eyes quite opened a few years ago when my children became old enough to make their own decisions about their lives, church, God, employment, and direction in life. The brokenness didn’t come until they took a step out of the house and I felt like they were taking a step off a cliff (or wait….maybe that was just me that felt the freefall due to lack of control…) My children are wonderful people, but my concerns for them daily overwhelm me at times as I do not see them headed in the direction I thought they would be. That’s why I would love to read this book, and to have my husband read it too – so we can learn how to handle ourselves as parents and our children as God’s children through all the lovely, broken parts.

    • I used to feel that if I laid my body over a pothole in the road, my children would bend down, grab my body, throwing it out of the way, and dive down the hole. What I know is that we are not responsible for the choices our children make. We are responsible for our responses to their choices. Hold on tightly, broken mom. God loves you – and your broken loves ones – sooooo.

  67. Elisa, I am broken with you and all broken lives, those who commented and those who did not dare to comment. I came from a very dysfunctional family, both at home and at church. My dad was verbally and sexually abusive, and my mom’s depression often took her away from us, both mentally and physically. In church, a place that should have been a place of safety and nurturing, we all were spiritually abused and a brother, sister, and I were also sexually abused by a minister.

    Thank you for speaking to my heart today, Elisa. I am especially comforted by this paragraph: “God doesn’t sweep the broken up into a dustpan and discard it. In order to reach the broken in our world, God Himself broke, allowing His own Son to die a broken death on a cross for us. God brings beauty in the broken. God loves the broken. God uses the broken.” Such beautiful hope for the broken!

  68. Not so easy to relate because there’s no big word for it. Idolizing my Christian husband. Heartbroken when treated at all harshly? Took broken heart to God again and again, and am being healed/forgiven ever so slowly of the sin of idolatry. So now I can speak up to the harsh in God honoring ways and praying so hard for the daughter’s heart to find and each day choose God’s way.
    Like Anna in Frozen I think my journey has been to learn not to love indiscriminately.

  69. How beautiful we are in our brokeness. Thank you God the Father for opening the door to healing through these words spoken in this blog. We gather together behide our windows of the internet to express what we’ve kept hidden and you offer us the light of your divine love to shine into the pain, sorrow, disappointment, fear, and loneliness to show us where two or three are gathered so there you are God in your mercy. For all of us to start the process of reconcilation may we all come to understand the acceptance of our own stories that are written within HIS. To Jesus be the Glory.
    Blessings to all

  70. Oh Elisa,

    How did that lie ever get so deeply ground into the church culture? I still struggle with it! Just today as I was struggling with an older child/young adult’s attitude and how she seemed like teflon to my words of instruction, the Lord got my attention through His Word! He ALONE can reach her heart of hearts- I cannot change her heart- God’s Spirit CAN!! I would be so blessed to receive a copy of your book {we all would, I am sure 🙂 } Thank you for your generosity!!

    • Exactly! There’s no such thing as a perfect family! It’s a myth! Time to lift our heads and learn to embrace and dare I say LOVE the families we are: broken. And beautiful.

  71. My family is currently in a broken state.. Too many things to share publicly, but I’m in desperate need of your book. If I don’t receive a free copy, I’m sure I will purchase one.

  72. Broken and feeling alone in a country that isn’t really mine, where language barriers are real and day to day life can be a struggle. A believer and a sinner, saved by his grace and his broken heart and pain. Hurting and wondering why I can’t seem “pull it all together” to live my life in a way that is helpful to others and not so focused on myself. Trying to hold on just a little longer when all I really want to do is give in, let go and move on to another place in time…trying to let go and let God, easy to say but finding it harder to do. Beautiful video and devotion. Thank you

    • Oh CJ, how we need each other! I pray that God reveals his presence in your daily moment today. He is all around you and is, indeed, bringing answers to your needs. Turn into the broken to see him already there…creating beauty.

  73. I would love to win this book! Brokenness comes in many shapes and forms. My family may not be broken in the since as you experienced, but still for some we experience brokenness in the form of emotional abuse, etc. from someone we love. Or it could be brokenness from a past we would rather forget.

  74. And he discards not one shard of the broken, knowing there is value in every part of us; each piece of our broken matters. He is the master craftsman, able to recreate new and wholeness in all of our brokenness. I am not alone because of Him.

  75. Only God through Christ can give us the daily healing that our broken lives need. No matter how good our lives look on the outside, without Jesus in our lives we are all broken with no hope of being pieced back together. In fact, God allowed Him to be broken for us so that we can be with Him. I am very thankful for that.

  76. As the church librarian of our tiny rural church I am always on the lookout for real books that show real people…broken and all. We need each other and we surely need Him.

  77. O we are all broken up to pieces and put together by the LORD piece by piece by piece.
    O well, hopefully the broken parts won’t crack under the stress of it all.
    🙂

  78. HI! My thought process has always been, “because I come from a broken home, I’m not going to have that happen when I’m married with children of my own.” But I know, this is not going to happen. Like you said, we are all broken. I struggle with brokenness from my past. However, I also know that God’s plan for me is greater than anything that has happen.

  79. Broken. That was once such a painful word for me, until I realized that broken meant “open”. I’m broken OPEN and when I’m broken OPEN, then HIS light shines into those dark places and there is no more darkness. I would love the chance to read this book. I come from a broken and then mended family and I too have suffered many breaks, two broken marriages with three children, addiction and alcoholism in my life, and a third marriage that has withstood some tremendous breaking…and we are that abnormal normal family.

  80. Wow…. I almost didn’t comment…. There are so many broken stories… Mine is no different, not really. My earliest memories are of insest…sexual abuse… and it goes on from there… As a young married my husband was unfaithful…. But I found Gid faithful… He took that broken marriage and rebuilt it into something beautiful…at 38 I became a widow w/4 children…. Once again… My loving God, always faithful walked me through the hardest, darkest days…. asked me to trust Him w/my future.
    I surrendered my future to him and when I least expected it he brought someone into my life that filled the gaps for my children and lightened my heart… and 3 more children were brought into my life. We were all broken. A broken, crazy, blended mess!! lol… But we love our blended mess. 🙂
    Your book sounds like I could glean new insights … And encouragement.
    Blessings

    • Thanks for sharing your story. It’s funny how we can pull back thinking “my brokenness is nothing special.” But each of us is uniquely loved – because of our brokenness. In our own personal brokenness, we see God work – up close and personal.

  81. God is the “glue” that holds the many pieces together in my life. At times I feel that I have been “dropped and shattered” over and over, yet HE holds me together and gives me hope to keep moving forward. Thank you for writing your blog and reminding each of us how we are all broken and that none of us are alone.

  82. I am broken. I was Had. My identity, however, is not in my brokenness and thankfully I was not discarded. God picked up the pieces of my life and knit me back together and thankfully, through His grace, gave me a renewed sense of purpose and hope, again, for my future. He loves me despite me and I’m so so thankful.

  83. I am broken and I’ve struggled to put things back together but I’ve learned that I can’t do it…only HE can but it’s still a work in progress while I get rid of old mindsets and instead focus on what HE says and what HE can do!

    I am a perfectionist and it’s hard to give up control but bit by bit I’m learning to let Him lead…

    I would love to win a copy of this book.

  84. I love how you said, “God doesn’t sweep the broken up into a dustpan and discard it. In order to reach the broken in our world, God Himself broke, allowing His own Son to die a broken death on a cross for us. God brings beauty in the broken. God loves the broken. God uses the broken.”

    I lived many years as a broken soul trying to fix what I didn’t cause, be who I couldn’t be, and doing what I shouldn’t do. When I finally surrendered to Jesus six years ago He took my “mess” and turned it into my “message.” I didn’t think anyone, let alone God, could love me, and I’m so glad I was wrong. I work at my church now and have the opportunity to show that God uses broken people to reach other broken people and tell them about Him. To Him be the glory, forever. Amen.

    • Thanks Michelle. Your words comfort me – and I’m sure everyone who is responding here. Isn’t it awesome to be used BECAUSE we are broken? Beautiful!

  85. I live in Canada and would love a copy of this book.
    After almost 20 years of broken marriages, lost jobs, moving to get away, and finally coming back full circle, I’ve realized the gift is in the loving, not the fixing. I am learning to love myself and my journey. I’ve seen the beauty from ashes in my two beautiful daughters who still carry scars from our broken past but decide to carry on in strength and resilience anyway. They inspire me, humble me and show me every day that the broken can be a perfect place to begin true authenticity.

  86. I’d love to win a copy of this book! I’m an extreme people-pleaser and I avoid conflict at all costs — outside my home. I’ve learned to let down those walls at home, which is good in some ways, but it causes me to try to control the people who let me be myself. I can be harsh to those who love me best. I’m learning and growing in this area.

  87. I am very much struggling and feeling broken right now due to a separation after 25 years of marriage. My husband is struggling with pain and depression. I tried my hardest to fix him but can’t. I feel so alone, rejected and sad every day. I’m trying to figure it all out but it is the most difficult thing I have ever gone through. Would love to read this book. Thanks for the chance to win.

  88. I would love to win this book. I am quite broken. The pieces are starting to heal.I love this: “God doesn’t sweep the broken up into a dustpan and discard it. In order to reach the broken in our world, God Himself broke, allowing His own Son to die a broken death on a cross for us. God brings beauty in the broken. God loves the broken. God uses the broken.”

    • A bandage on a wound. A balm on an open sore. A hug for a lonely heart. A touch for a hungry being. God loves your broken. And God will use your broken.

  89. I think I can see others more broken than I, and then forget I’m broken as well. Degrees of brokenness don’t trump the need of a Savior. Thanks for your candidness and allowing God’s message to be shared. I’ve gotten to share w/ several MOPS this year on the beautiful mess, which it continues to be!

    • Thanks Sue! It’s tempting – and human – to compare our brokenness with another’s. Bottom line – brokenness needs mending. And that comes from Jesus.

  90. Even if I don’t get the chance to win this book, I will read it. So many of my friends are facing separation, “unhappiness” and divorce in their families and it’s just heartbreaking. I don’t even know where to start but to encourage them, but at the same time, I’m broken. Not in my marriage, but in my mothering and emotions. I am so thankful God doesn’t let me go.

    • Wherever we are broken, now or in the past or in the days to come, God comes with his presence to bring beauty. So grateful! Bend into your brokenness and welcome Jesus there!

  91. I am broken. I struggled with infertility for years. Wondering where God was. Ww eventually adopted. But still wanting that perfect marriage & perfect family. I now am a stay at home mom raising a daughter with developmental delays & speech delays. I struggle daily with being caln when the meltdowns come. This book would be a great thing to have to help me see we are all broken & God still uses us.

  92. Broken I am…through rejection, abuse, working and not working, minisrty wife and mom and Mimi! It is only inter brokenness that we can see God mend us back into his image.

  93. I love that God embraces the broken! Even after receiving God in my life and attending church for many years I didn’t realize until recently that everyone sitting in the seats were just like me. Messed up and imperfect! I realize now perfection isn’t what God expects. And He uses those who have trials to further His kingdom. I love reading that you experienced the need to fix your family and keep it together. I felt this way since I was very young. Not because I had to or was expected to, but because I felt that what I needed to do. I still struggle with the fact that I can’t control life. It is refreshing to know I am not the only one who struggles with that. The feeling of failure when it was out of your control has shadowed much of my life. I can’t wait to read this book. God is good, thank you for your story!

  94. I come from a broken family…not in the divorce sense, but lack of affection from my dad, alcoholism, and abuse. Though it wasn’t always in our home, it was extended family members it was most definetly a broken family. Over the years, I have distanced myself from most of them…thinking I was better, but I too am BROKEN. I would love to have this book and read more about your thoughts. Thank you for the opportunity to possibly receive such a gift;)

    • In my experience, my brokenness has become a bridge to mending broken relationships. When I admit my humanity and need, God comes in it. And his presence in me is attractive to others.

  95. Most of my life has been composed of brokenness…Daddy had MS, Mom committed suicide, Miscarriage, Divorce, House Fire – took everything most of all treasured photos, etc. I say these things not for pity BUT because of these trials in life, I needed something more….and I found something MORE! I became a Child of the Most High! Looking back only long enough to know that ALL of this was in God’s plan. Trust in the Lord and receive healing~

  96. I too came from brokenness. A broken family growing up… still a broken family, a broken fatherly relationship, entering into broken relationships, and broken hurts but the beauty has been God has used my brokenness to reach others.

  97. You certainly are not alone and my story is very similar to yours. My parents didn’t have a very good marriage most all of my childhood and eventually divorced. I married an amazing Christian man and while we have a wonderful life, we have our problems! Life is messy and isn’t perfect. I would love a copy of this book to help me accept that we are all broken!

  98. Broken and asking God to make something beautiful with all the pieces. Hard to let go of control and just love!

  99. What a beautiful word broken is, and for far too long I have tried to ‘appear’ together! It has taken the past couple of years, through revisiting my childhood and where some of the lies of who I am and God is, that I have truly seen the beauty in brokenness as it has led me to the sufficiency of the Cross!

  100. Broken allows God to glue the pieces smooth as new. The broken can direct other broken to God for their repair.

  101. This really grasped my heart this morning! We really are all broken people. I long for perfect and then get upset when things are not that way.

  102. I would LOVE to read this… it really resonates with my childhood and my current life. I grew up in a Christian home, but my father (a church elder) was involved in numerous affairs which I found out about in my teen years, a very vulnerable time. I craved the perfect family after that disgrace, but I made a perfect family my idol. I really thought I was entitled to it and could achieve it because I am a Christian. If I just read all the right books and did all the right things, surely I could marry a faithful Christian man and create the family I needed to fill the hole in my heart. So I attempted to do this. I found that faithful man and thought he loved God, but today he is controlling, emotionally abusive and a Pharisee, not a true believer. Faithful, yes, but that hardly matters when this is a lifeless marriage and Christ is not at the center. My idol of marrying the perfect man has been exposed to me through this disappointment. My three young children are very broken as a result of my difficult marriage. I know God allows brokenness to reveal Himself to us. But I have been around too many Christians who present their families as perfect, and I often believe the lie that God loves them and takes care of them more than He does me. This sounds like a hope-filled book I could definitely use!

    • The mythology of the perfect family is so…. slick! Like a shiny bauble, it’s held out as something we must have! Yet we reach and it’s pulled back. We reach again and it’s pulled back again. Always beyond our reach. God relieves us by helping us understand that we are broken. He bends to us to JOIN us in our broken, bringing the beauty of his being in our days.

  103. Elisa,

    I heard you speak years ago at a MOPS Convention. The story you shared of your having to take care of your mom stays with me. Thanks again for sharing your story so that others can sense God’s mercy and grace in the midst of their stories!

    ellie

  104. I desire a day that everything does not feel broken, is there anything besides broken? And if not feeling broken then things are being broken literally washing machine, dishes, clothes, kids bones etc etc your book sounds like a great inspiration

    • There’s a lot of broken. For sure. All around us. When we embrace our broken, Jesus comes to enter it – and to reveal to us his beauty in it. Need. That.

  105. I love this!!! From growing up with an absent alcoholic parent, teen pregnancy, domestic abuse, finally finding the love of Jesus. Speaking on my brokenness has been the most healing I have ever done. Working alongside the single parents at my church and Now we will be going to Panama as missionaries to work with the sexually exploited youth. Would love to add this to our library!

  106. In am too proud and full of pride to ASK for help in my broken life. I am afraid and ashamed to admit that I am broken and need help. I was always told as a child that I made my bed and now I have to deal with it. It is very hard sometimes to be humble. Thank you for your sharing a little bit about your story. I would love to win your book.

    • Oh Karen, nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Nothing. He sees your brokenness and he loves you. Enough to die for you. God loves broken you. And God wants to use broken you – uniquely – in his world filled with broken people. Will you love him back by letting him love you? Will you love him back by letting him use you?

  107. I love that God brings beauty from brokenness. I come from a broken family. I am child of divorce. I had two children out of wedlock. I married a man who also came from a broken home, and who has been divorced himself. Clearly, we aren’t perfect, but we have been more blessed than I ever thought possible. I thank God every day that he picked up the pieces of our broken lives, broken because we tried to make our own plans, and carefully reassembled them according to His plan.

  108. Growing up in a family involved in ministry; with parents that suffered from mental illness, our life was far from the perfect image we were expected to have. As the first born, my duties included, meeting my siblings needs; my parents emotional needs; keep up w the house, meet the ‘older sister’ expectations to a T; be the best church goer, as church members would watch us like a hawk and report to my parents; and live with the put downs and vullying from teachers, neighbors and classmates … since as pastor’s kids the dress code was very different than the one my inner-city public school unspoken code expected. Ahhhh …. a lot of years of deconstructing, and then rebuilding my foundational thoughts and behaviors, with His grace, mercy, tenderness and love. This book will be great most everyone …. a blessing, indeed.

    • I often talk about the “dismantling” of Elisa. Tinkle. Break. Crash. Gone is the old. Here is the new: Broken Elisa. And into Broken Elisa comes the beauty of God.

  109. Thank you for this book and shedding light on the beauty of brokenness. I fought my own brokenness for over 16 years not wanting to face it, to own it because it tied to the abuse I endured for years at the hands of my immediate family. I too blamed myself, felt shame, guilt, unworthyness. Only recently did I realize that I don’t have to live in the darkness anymore and that through all that pain God hurt for me, I wasn’t alone. I read somewhere something very important that changed my perspective of how we’re equally broken, no matter how big or small the offense might have been. It said that if someone cut your toe off, or cut your leg off by the calf, or the knee, or the thigh, regardless none of us can walk. It’s not about comparing our hurts but placing our faith in God that he will deliver us as he did his own Son. It is the coming together of all of us who acknowledge our brokenness and allow God to mend us so that we can lift one another up and walk together in purpose of bringing glory to God. Thank you for your heart and your message, God Bless.

    • So well put! We are often tempted to compare our “owies” to those of others. Who has it worse? All that does is make everyone feel worse. Instead, let’s define broken as broken, no matter the degree, and then look for God’s beauty in it?

  110. I am coming to realize this is a beautiful truth but this is something I nevertheless struggle with! Wanting things to be just right, I used to wish I lived with “The Waltons” instead of my own family 🙂 … and yet it is the broken places that make a beautiful mosaic! I would love to get a copy of this !

    • I seem to remember the Waltons had a few broken moments. 😉 Yes, our broken pieces make a beautiful mosaic of God’s revelations in us and through us, in our world.

  111. I am still broken and tryin to come to terms that my brokenness can only be healed by the Father. My family has been broken since I can remember. I thought too getting married and having my own family would be different but it not in the sense there is still brokenness. My title used to be the mediator, now God has given me a new one and reminded.me I can’t fix the broken, more often then not when we try it becomes worse. This is our heavenly fathers job. I would love to win this book to share with all the women in my life those who know and those that don’t have a relationship with God our father. Thank you for sharing this today. It was just what the Lord knew I needed to hear. God bless all of you and your.ministry

  112. I would love to read your book and add it to our MOPS & MOMSnext group’s lending library. I often say that God’s grace is revealed when he has worked in spite of me, even when I did not make the right choices or deal with things appropriately. I had what we called a “superficial” relationship with my mother most my life. We were not close and I always felt unimportant to her. I had deep hurts from my growing up years because of decisions she made and how they affected me. A few years ago, the old stuff I had not dealt with collided with overwhelming new stresses and changes in my life. I shut down. Although she did not understand at first, I needed her to show me just a tiny fragment of humility concerning the past. She told my husband that she could no longer deal with me, that I needed help. His reply: “she is your daughter, when did you think you had a choice?” I love that man. Finally, in a crying, shouting match, the tiny bit of humility came, forgiveness was effortless for the first time and I was able to let go of lots of bitterness and hurt. I came to understand that God’s desire is for restoration. Now, we are building on an entirely new relationship as mother and daughter and we are both better for it. The problem with brokenness sometimes, is that too many people cannot commit to putting things back together. Maybe it requires more from them than they are willing to give, it is not easy. Now, with 3 amazing children ages 14, 11 and 3, my husband and I are building a healthy, loving legacy for our family, only with God’s help. I found beauty in my brokenness through restoration and new beginnings. Thanks for letting me share.

  113. Elisa’s words have given me courage and clarity time and again through my Mom’s Devotional Bible. I’ve also had the privilege of hearing her speak, and I’ve been changed for the better simply by being in her presence. She is both an awe inspiring woman of God and a down to earth mom-in-the-trenches. If Elisa wrote it – you should read it! Love this woman.

  114. Broken…this past year has broken me. My “perfect” family world was shattered when learning a child was suicidal and in rebellion against us and God. The beauty of this brokenness has been my own spiritual growth. It’s painful…but full of promise in Him.

    • Such pain! Brokenness is wrenchingly painful. And yes…full of promise. That’s the beauty part. Thanks for courageously sharing here Karen. You are not alone.

  115. Elisa,
    I didn’t realize I was truly broken until I was 40 years old. How much pride do you think it took to keep that under wraps? God has used the 14 years since to reveal Himself to me in ways I never could have imagined. The more I see of Him, the more He clearly shows me who I really am…and who I am not. It’s been painful, but I pray He continues to break me away from my old self and put me back together in His image. Thank you for this gut-wrenching book. I can embrace the brokenness like never before.

  116. You are definitely not alone. My family was broken. On the outside it appeared to be perfect, but was so broken and as a child, I too felt like it was all my fault. I would love to read your book and read your thoughts. How interesting. Thankyou.

  117. I have a similar past story. Abuse. Mom-alcoholic. Drugs. Promiscuity. Now I’ve surrendered my life to Jesus. And I too have tried to get a grasp on having my ‘perfect’ family, feeling overwhelmed by my many deficiencies. Instead of focusing on ares where we excel, I see my lack, and at times it looks so big. Would love this book!

  118. I came from a broken family – alcoholism, pill dependent and divorce. I myself got pregnant at 15 and married. After 18 years I divorced and have watched my children go down the same road as I did. My daughter is divorced and working on her second break-up, My son has 2 children from 2 different moms, divorced twice and working on the third………I feel so responsible and my husband now is fed up with me because he believes that I enable too much and that I carry way to much guilt. I am hurting them more than helping them. I see them hurt and it breaks my heart. The cycle has to be broken. I am working on that right now. I belong to a church and have a nice community but I don’t go all the time because I don’t feel that I fit in. The shame can be unbareable at times. It is a huge vicious circle that needs to be broken so that we all can be whole again……..not again but for the first time! “Lighten up” 🙂

  119. I come from a broken home. My mother was an alcoholic and died when I was 12. I spent my whole childhood hiding my brokenness, and realized most of my life as well. I am not broken. I am a survivor. I am victorious through God’s grace and love. I would love to read this book over and over again.

  120. I acknowledge the brokenness of others, but fail in my attempts to teach them to do the same. My oldest child is broken differently than the other four kids and the other four don’t see it. So hard to watch as some don’t realize that unconditional love loves the broken ones too. We are all broken in some manner.

    • Even God’s family was broken. How is it that we expect we will create perfectly intact families? Silly us. But thanks be to God that he brings beauty in the broken. 🙂

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    This is the error received if one tries to purchase the book now and clicks on your link. I know that many will be attempting to buy this book and be disappointed when they are unable due to technical difficulties.

  122. this is so so hard for me! i know i’m broken but i operate every day trying to cover up those broken places and to strive for perfection. and then i’m teaching my children that in a sense i expect perfection from them in their behavior, an expectation that is impossible for them to meet! i “know” better but my heart returns to this way of operating over and over again in the course of ONE day. this book has been on my wishlist for when i can afford it.. i would love to win a copy!

    • I discovered that I tried to protect my children from the very things that made me need Jesus. Surely, I was acting out of love. But I’ve come to discover that such protection is more about me – my comfort – that them – their Christlikeness.

  123. My family and I could use this book. I come from an alcoholic, verbal abusive, and cancer 1st family. My 2nd family has been hit with cancer and dealing with a lot of issues of the not knowing. Most days, I feel like I am at my breaking point, but God never gives up on me/us. If I had the money I would buy the book today, but I don’t. I would be so privileged to win this book!

  124. Broken is the word that just came to me this weekend as I attended an adoptive mothers retreat. I have been feeling Broken for some time and haven’t wanted to face it or accept it. I’ve been fighting it and spending way to much energy in that fight than just accepting it, asking for healing, living it and moving on. I would love to win a copy of your book as I feel I can relate so well. Healing comes when we share our brokenness. Thanks for sharing. 🙂

    • Indeed, just bringing it out into the light frees our brokenness. Adoption has its own unique challenges. (I know…) I encourage you to explore Sherrie Eldridge’s offerings.

  125. I came from a large family and it was not until I was a teenager that I realized that my family was broken in so many ways and I too was broken. When I got married I felt that I could have the perfect family but then alcohol, drugs, and infidelity led to a broken family for my son. My expectations were shattered BUT GOD brought me out of that pit of despair. I can now live with the fact that I or no one around me is perfect and we are all broken in some way or another and you and I are not alone in this. I would love the opportunity to read your book.

  126. Hi
    you are right we are all broken, as a young child all I ever wanted was for my family to spend time together but there was always a reason to stop the togetherness – too much work , my parents had meetings, a sick sibling etc I would wake up early and make breakfast , suggest we all go to church together , even get up early to help my dad with barn chores so he would be in the house in time for breakfast before I went to school, but sadly none of it worked – even after I left home at fifteen and made my own way I was always trying to make people see me and spend time with me even if some of the ways were destructive to my psyche – as I grow older I struggle every day to see my own self worth without having someone else validate it . I now see I am a gift from God and am worthy of love and respect.

  127. What a much-needed reminder that we aren’t to just avoid or wipe away brokenness but to lean into it and allow it to mold us. I so often think of my upbringing with some thoughts of bitterness toward my parents that I still have to work through…and then try to almost overcompensate within my own family, placing such high expectations on us as parents. I feel like this book would be one to very much humble myself while also helping me to work through some of those feelings that creep up from time to time and impact how I’m parenting and interacting with my husband.

    • We all need to keep keeping what is real and true in front of us. It’s so easy to fall into the lies and myths around us. Broken – in Jesus’ hands – can be beautiful.

  128. Beautifully broken, for if we are not broken, we cannot come to our Savior. Why would someone not broken even need a Savior? So in order to be saved, I must be broken. Weird logic, but it works for me! Besides that, a standard of perfect is so impossible to live up to, believe me, I’ve tried….and failed. Again, and again. Only He is perfect, Thank God!

  129. My brokenness follows me around and sometimes I parent out of it (ugh). I can’t wait to read the book!

  130. Would love to win a copy of your book. You are right we’re all broken and there are no perfect individuals therefore perfect families do not exist.
    Thanks for writing about this subject.

  131. We’ve lost a daughter to triploidy, and we’ve been broken in our adoption journey. I would love to win.

  132. I heard it said that all the broken pieces of our lives become a beautiful mosaic in the hands of our Father as He lovingly puts us together. I truly believe He can redeem anything and bring beauty out of ashes and brokenness. He is the only perfect one after all! Thank you for writing this book and sharing your heart so others can have hope!

  133. You are most definitely not alone! Thank you for your refreshing testimony. I too, am broken. I would LOVE to win this book!

  134. I too am from a childhood divorce, alcoholic mother. I belong to a church group that sits with the broken parts of people. That is who we are. It doesn’t have to be a deep story to feel broken. I would love a copy of your book to share with my church group- those who are with us now and those who will join
    In the future.

  135. I was broken before I was even born. My biological father left my mom as soon as she told him she was pregnant. She was very young, but very brave and has been the most awesome mother I could ever ask for. I’ve had serious troubles with men in my past until I met my husband. I’d love to win a copy of this for myself and then share it with my mother and my sisters. Thanks!

    • That’s a powerful line: I was broken before I was ever born. I think many of us feel that way. And yet, God says that he knit us together in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139). How beautiful that is: beauty in the broken.

  136. Letting go of the fairytail of our lives, the one we create to survive the brokenness, isn’t easy, but necessary in order for restoration to take place. God doesn’t want us to remain forever broken but we must acknowledge it and accept it so God can use it for His glory!! Accepting my brokenness and weakness has been very difficult for me. Letting go of my sense of control even harder!! I’d love a copy of your book!

    • Fairy tales are fun – but not the real world. Huh? Thanks for your comments. So good for us all to reconsider how we think control can keep us safe. Or not!

  137. I think we are all broken. It’s a matter of whether you choose to tell others or not. It’s reminds me that everyone we meet is fighting a hard battle. We are all fighting something and we can only look to God to help us put the pieces together.

    • Even God’s family was broken. It’s weird to think we can do better? And yet, he brings his beauty into our broken. Over and over and over again. So grateful.

  138. I have 3 moms and three dads. 1 real mother, one step mother, and one wicked stepmother. I have a biological father, a dad who adopted me, & a stepfather. I am also on my second marriage. I definitely would do things differently. My children took it pretty hard. I am broken and come from a broken family and thank God for His love and mercy that covers me.

  139. My sister went through a nasty divorce almost three years ago. It rocked all of our worlds. Now, my mom takes care of her kids 12+ hours a day, five days a week. We’re still all feeling a little broken and shattered and trying to piece together what life now looks like as our family. There are new roles, different schedules, ongoing heartaches and giant joys of dong life so closely together…. we always dreamed we would all live nearby and do our “happily ever afters” together. This wasn’t the plan. We cling to the promises God makes that have never changed, despite the circumstances. and He’s using the brokenness to bring all of us a bit closer to the end of ourselves, so we can find real life in Him. But it is sure is messy. I’m the little sister who had just met the love of her life as she watched her big sister’s marriage unravel. Just when I couldnt’ wait to share the joy of my own new marriage and birth of our babies, my parents have been consumed by the trials and pain of their other hurting daugther. Anxious to read this book and then share it with my mom and sister as we all try to find the beauty in the broken. It’s always to good to be reminded: you’re not alone.

  140. Both my birth family and family from marriage have been broken….addiction, abuse, unplanned pregnancy, divorce, cancer, death. I now prefer to view it as God’s mosaic of my life, the broken parts make a beautiful collage of colors, life, experiences and love.

  141. Yes, I come from a broken family. We all do. Thank you for the reminder as I raise my own family that we don’t need to worry about being perfect. We just need to see each other as Jesus sees us.

  142. These past few days I have been realizing just how weak and unable I am to do the things I know I should and need to do.And how I cannot control everything in my life or the lives of my children. And this is very hard for me to accept-it just shows how broken I am-how we all are broken and we (I) do not have the answer!! There is truly only One answer-Christ. i would love to read this book-I have only recently become aware of (in)courage. Thank you!!

  143. I am an adult survivor of a broken home and a broken family. I am also a survivor of abuse.
    This book would be so helpful to me. For years, I blamed myself for my parent’s divorce and for the abuse I went through. There are times that it hinders me from being close to my husband.
    I know that God can use broken things to bring the beauty into life and to help others.
    Thank you for opening your heart to us, Elisa. I appreciate it.

    • It’s beautiful that when we see and embrace our brokenness, God not only reveals his beauty, he also births a new kind of compassion in us. For our own brokenness and for the brokenness of others in our world.

  144. I loved your book and I would love to give one away at our church brunch on March 29th. I just think so many people are hurting and need your words of encouragement. It really touches my heart to know out of our brokenness, God brings us closer to Him.
    Thank you for sharing your heart with others.
    in Christ,
    Joyce

  145. When I read “lighten up”…ahhh, those words used to be like fingernails down a chalk board when said to me. It was ok for me to speak them, but how could someone say them to me? After all the physical, emotional and mental work I put into things, usually much more than was actually needed, it felt like a crushing insult.

    I was, am and will always be broken. What I’ve realized is that the best super glue is God’s love! It’s free and and he’s willing to let me use as much I want and share it with others1

  146. Ahh it’s so nice to know I’m not alone! When the “how are you?” question is either answered by, “good, thanks” or if I was being honest, a 2 hour explanation + tears (again). My parents have been separated for 5 years, and it’s been hard to go through, and especially to see the aftereffects on my younger brothers. Time goes by but it does not heal all wounds!

  147. I would love to win this. I am a child of divorce as well. As much as I try to act like this hasn’t affected me it really has. I am married

    • Life affects us. All of us and all of it. Thanks for your honesty. There is no need to pretend. God sees all. He loves you. And he brings his beauty in your broken.

  148. I am broken because I am painfully lonely, don’t know if my kids are going to end up going to church every Sunday, or ever for that matter, as adults because it is so hard for us to get there each week. But instead of panicking and worrying, I will do my best as a young mom and cling to the father’s grace he has for my family!

    This is such a beautiful book and sounds like it would be a perfect fit for me. I need to read it one way or another.

    • Lacey, hang in there!! I remember that stage where it didn’t seem like we could get anywhere EVER! I was so lonely. Church is wonderful and I do pray my children are involved & serving in one when they are grown, but my greatest desire for them is to grow up loving and knowing God and loving others. God does have grace for you and He loves you so much! Don’t beat yourself up about not being able to make it to church – it’s hard with little ones (although, don’t give up on it, either… fellowship and corporate worship are good for the soul!). I know MOPS has been a huge blessing in my life and helped me find other moms in the same stage of life with the same struggles. Maybe see if there’s a group in your area? Or another similar group for young moms! You are not alone!!

  149. I have been so broken, yet I see more beauty now than if had I not gone through those times of trial. God has used those events to soften my heart and open my eyes. Your book is on my to-read list (after hearing you speak at MomCon last fall), but I haven’t had the opportunity to get it, yet!

  150. I actually have my own copy of this book…love it. Reading through it slowly to really grasp it. I’d love to have another copy to send to my friend in Pittsburgh. We could read it together. Thank you!

  151. I am reading The Beauty of Broken and love how candid Elisa is when describing her journey, especially page 90 (of the paperback)…..with all of the *****. I am so glad to see another pilgrim traveling the road who is honest and open even when it means that life can be so sh***ty at times. Praise the Lord, I’m not alone. Glory to God!

  152. Broken…I have learned that it is through those broken places that the light of Christ shines most clearly through us. My childhood was broken with alcoholism and adultery, my marriage has been broken with selfishness and anger. I’m sure I’ve passed along elements of my brokenness to my children. Hopefully, Christ seeps from those cracks and spills out to those I encounter along the way. I remind myself, every time I cry, that my tears are so precious to Him that He collects Him. All those broken places are also places where my God has ministered to me with great tenderness and unending love. It still hurts, but there is a beauty found in the closeness with which He tends me.

  153. I would love a copy of this book to remind me that God makes beauty from ashes. He is on His throne and He is in control. May He bless you and all who come to Him with the broken pieces and use all of it for His glory and our good.

  154. We have similar stories in that I remember my parents sitting me down and telling me that daddy wasn’t going to live with us anymore. Very complicated words for a preschooler.

    How comforting to know we are not alone in our brokenness. We may have different stories but our hope is that we have a God who heals us and puts us back together in such a beautiful way.

    Out of the ashes, beauty will rise!!!

  155. In May 2011 my husband of 30 years passed away, following that day, I realized how broken my life really is and have been struggling ever since to heal this broken heart. It’s a difficult journey but I have faith with God’s help I will survive. He is my Saving Grace.

    • Oh such pain! My heart breaks with you. God understands the broken. His heart broke over us – and over his own son broken for us. I pray you feel his presence and discover his beauty in your broken.

  156. This is exactly what I needed to hear today to know I’m not alone. It really spoke to my heart.
    monk5 at charter dot net

  157. There have been so many broken things in my life that I can no longer tell the pieces apart. I love how Jesus can take my broken pieces and match them up with someone else’s. He makes us more than “useful” again… His greatest work is the way that we, all our brokenness, somehow become whole. We are a marvel. His church. His family. Perfectly Imperfect.

  158. Oh Elisa Morgan! You were there to help me raise my little ones which are now big ones back in the 1990’s thru MOPS!! It is so nice to find you here today, still encouraging moms!! Thank you for the reminder that there is beauty in the broken, when the Lord is the Lord of your world!!

  159. My husband and I both come from broken families and have managed to make our own family broken, too, through many mistakes over the years. We NEED to know how to fix what we can and leave the rest to God.

    Thank you for writing a book on this subject that so many people deal with.

  160. As Pastors of a church we have struggled with being perceived as having that perfect family…but like you (and everyone) we have broken lives and our family is broken. My heart is in shatters at this present stage we are in, and sadly we are not able to share with folk (legally) BUT our heavenly father knows the pain we are in as a family. I cry out to him numerous times a day when the ache in my chest gets too much to bear. I want Him to take it away, and I know He will when the time is right, but it hurts so much. Nobody likes being broken….but I praise Him that though my heart may be feeling this at present I know He was broken for me, for us, for our son.
    Sometimes I feel like I am losing my mind, I think I would be better to be with the Lord now, but I am reminded that it’s not about ME, it’s about HIM. HE is using this broken hurtful time in our lives to grow us. Please Pray especially that our Son will grow thru this too

    • I do pray for your Son. Right now. God sees him – exactly where he is. And loves him. Just as he loves you. Luke 4. Luke 9. Chapters 7 and 8. Love to you.

  161. Your paragraph that starts out with “God doesn’t sweep the broken up into a dustpan and discard them…” My favorite paragraph. My friend shared this link with me, and it’s perfect for what I’m going through right now. I’m broken, by my sin nature, but also by others that was not my own doing who broke me. Someone shared the quote today with me “All my broken was made beautiful at the foot of the cross.” Seems God has a message for me today.

  162. After my dad died, the brokenness of my family started screaming. I thought we were close and cared about one another but I’ve since had to let go of the broken pieces and hope that I could somehow put them back together. It still breaks me that most of my siblings don’t really seem to care to have a relationship with me. Still, it has taught me to cling tightly the God because He is the only one who will never leave me.

  163. Oh how those words you wrote resonated inside me. We are swimming against the tide in our messy family, members who want to blame and not see reality, so therefore we remain stuck. I would love to win this book, blessings to you

  164. wow. I come from a broken family and there are things about my family that are broken and will pass to my kids, I am sure. I felt healing in just reading this post. Hope to win!

  165. beautiful. I too come from a broken family…I did my share of breaking and God keeps showing me how important that breaking was for shaping who I am in Christ. I look forward to reading this book.

  166. Many years ago, when my oldest was a toddler and I was beating myself up for blowing it-yet again–as a mom, my dear friend told me something that gave me such freedom. She told me that as parents, our kids need to see us fail, or they won’t know that they need God. Through our brokenness, and accepting that brokenness rather than hiding it, we can help point others to the only perfect One and debunk the myth that any of us can live unbroken. The greatest beauty in being broken is finding the One who can patch us back together.

  167. I would love to read this book. I too come from a broken home and lot of brokenness in my 48 years. God has been SOOO faithful to show me that yes there is broken family, dreams, expectations and broken heart but all of it has been perfectly broken for me. The world would look and say how can you say you have had a perfect family, children or life? My answer, because God knew exactly what I needed to make me who He wanted me to be! In making me who He wants me to be it took the broken things in my life to help me know how to run to the only One that can fix all that is broken in my life. This is how my life in spite of being broken has been perfect! I look forward to reading this book!!

  168. You are so not alone My family was as broken as it gets, while my husband’s parents have been married over 40 years. Our different upbringings are probably our biggest issue when it comes to raising our son. I look forward to reading the book.

  169. I have been very broken in my life and God has healed me each time, PTL! Being single til 28, parents divorcing after 20 years of marriage when I was in college, 2 pituatary tumors removed, gall bladder surgery, infertility issues, miscarriages, etc. God has been SO faithful to my sweet family of 6! Each time I go through something, God is right there, holding my hand, walking me through it and answering each time the answer I many not necessarily want, but need! When I am in the midst of a “mess”, I must remember how God has pulled me through in the past, knowing that He will pull me through now. His nature never changes or He wouldn’t be God! SO, if He was faithful in the past, He will be faithful in the present and future! TY for this post!!! God Bless you and your sweet ministry!

  170. I discovered a great song about this topic last week. It’s on Ellie Holcomb’s new cd called “As Sure As The Sun.” The song is “The Broken Beautiful.”

    Here are some lyrics from the chorus:
    That your love will never change, that there’s healing in your name
    And that you can take broken things and make them beautiful
    You took my shame and you walked out of the grave
    So your love can take broken things and make them
    Beautiful and make them beautiful

    Praise our God who makes broken things beautiful in our hearts and lives.

  171. I so could use a copy of this book. I am feeling very broken. I have never really been close to my father so Ive had alot of broken promises, dreams, and my heart. Family isn’t a concept that I really know because my family was broken and only God knows why I know there is a reason but I am trying to figure out why

  172. Oh yeah. Family one was broken and then when I married, family two also broke. I felt like I was reading my story when I read yours. I look forward to reading your book.

  173. I am broken, i have actually called myself broken in therapy for years. Dealing with post traumatic stress disorder from years of confinement and abuse during my teen years has really played with my mind and the power of God and the knowledge that I am not alone is comforting while still very sad. I wish this type of pain and brokenness on no one. Thank you for the giveaway, i am sure you will help some very lucky people!

  174. We are all broken in someway. Some of us go from broke to shattered but even with shAttered God can mend. I would love to read this book Broken. Shattered. Saved by grace

  175. Wow. So encouraged by this… I spout off and cling to the words that God can bring “beauty from ashes” but argue with God about my own brokenness, my family’s brokenness … and then I wrestle with the desire to embrace what God can do through it all and the ugly reality that I want. I want a normal family, a normal heart, a life without this mess. Thank you for this reminder, I would absolutely love to read your book.

  176. You are so not alone! My family was broken even though my parents didn’t actually divorce until after I did! I was married at 19 the first time and divorced after only two years (& one child) in an abusive marriage. I went on to recreate my own little mess but was quite astonished when my Mother mentioned my children living in a dysfunctional home… But God is the ultimate healer and I believe we sometimes have to live on the other side of what we experienced as children to really understand what our parents went through. God has a plan for the whole picture of our lives. I see that now as my daughters are grown but I am still teaching and mentoring them now the way I would have liked to have done when they were small.

    I am so very grateful that the Christian community is finally willing to open the doors and live the daily mess that we all are even when we love God completely. =)

  177. Elisa, I find that the more I try to correct the dysfunction I experienced in my family of origin, the more dysfunction I (think I) tend to create in my own family. I pray every day that my children grow up to be stable, loving, giving members of society and don’t require too much therapy for having me as their mother! I say that mostly in jest, but there is always that niggling fear that this will be so. Would love to receive a copy of your latest book and be encouraged in my parenting and faith walk.

  178. Elisa~because I have heard your voice on the radio, I felt as if I could hear you speaking as I read this post. Loved it. For far too long the lies of the perfect family and the bondage to false images and fake relational behaviors clouded my family of origin. I fought hard to be free of secrets and deception. Controlling it all was my go to for decades. Many are the places of brokenness in my life story but God (two of my favorite words) has had other plans for this cracked pot! I look forward to reading the wisdom you’ve gleaned from Him!

  179. We are all broken. I suffer from a chronic illness that began over 20 years ago. I constantly finding myself thinking, “if I could do ___________(fill in the blank) like normal people, my family would be so much happier.” We have to go on each day in life with what we have that day–not something we may or may not have in the future. We have to trust God to get through it.

  180. Lisa, loved the “cracked pot” comment. I have family of origin issues that keep me broken and I am physically disabled. I have felt like a “cracked pot” for a very long time. But recently I went through some changes and came closer to God and feel his arms holding my pieces together daily. Water still seeps around my edges but I have found smiles and laughter in my days as well. So your post added to my smiles for the day. Thanks and God bless.

  181. I have so many “fixed” broken ares in my life, if it were made into a mosaic, I know it would be the most beautiful ever!! God is so faithful and has been, from a teenage pregnancy, two divorces, son in drugs for 20 yrs, 4 rehabs, granddaughter in rehab now, letting God fix her brokenness…..she is product of divorce, but God is repairing the broken pieces one at a time……I would love this book for her…..Blessings to you!!!

  182. Hi Elisa,

    I was immediately struck by your title and the picture on the front cover! Wow. Your book looks so good! I loved the 2006 album the band Starfield titled “Beauty in the Broken,” and your title immediately reminded me of that. It’s a beautiful picture of who I still am. I come from a “broken” home as well, and out of 4 siblings, I am the only one still married. I am also the only one who is saved, and understands we are only complete in Christ.
    Marriage is hard, sometimes really hard, but my husband and I understand we don’t have to be perfect to have oneness. I always thought I would try to have that perfect family and realized it is impossible. One can strive and strive, but never get there. How comforting and healing it is to get to the place of surrender to Jesus and all He offers.
    This looks like a great read, and one to buy for others!

  183. I come from a broken family, not just my parents and brother, but also my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. It hurts. I would love to learn how it is okay.

    • Oh…it will be if it isn’t. God loves you so and will NEVER give up on you or anyone you love. Please pick it up and discover for yourself HIS beauty in your broken?

  184. I became broken when a broken person decided to break me. I was pretty cracked before that, but he sent me to the breaking point. Three years later, I still have hopes for vengeance and justice more than anything else. So I’d say it’s safe to say I’m as broken as they come.

    • Oh B, you are so honest. Thank you. When others break us, we understandably turn outward rather than inward. We have good reason to defend ourselves as defenses keep us safe. Yet…oddly…turning inward and discovering God’s beauty in our broken ultimately heals. For the moment – I pray you know that you are loved by a God who allowed his Son to be broken for us all.

  185. You are so right, this is a subject which will speak for, and to, many, many women. I know I am one who is anxious to dig in and explore this topic, having learned, as you succinctly explained above, that our desire to ‘fix the broken’ or ‘break the cycle of broken’ is not going to happen this side of heaven. Thanks so much for writing on this very relevant topic.

  186. I am the women’s ministries leader at our church. I’d love to use this book in a women’s group at our church. I haven’t met any women who don’t have some brokenness in their lives. You have written this book to help us heal. Thank you!

  187. Would love to win this, read this, and share this -I know that I am broken as are so many whom I know. We have all fallen in some way.

  188. God uses broken people to bring us to Himself that He make us whole and full of His Life. It is difficult to find any person who has not had a shattering experience that breaks the heart, body and soul. God is waiting for that person to turn to the Savior who is waiting the heal the broken-hearted and exchange the broken life for His own. It was only through my broken marriage that I found God’s love and mercy to deliver me into His glorious light.

  189. Thank you so much for this word….. the of comfort, to know i am not the only broken one… sometimes it feels like it….Lost 3 babies, adopted, and had what I thought was going to be the perfect family… little to my surprise… my son has always had serious problems…. been in prison and a daughter that I thought was perfect.. then she turned 16 and I don’t know what happened…. she is 29 years old now and has twin boys…. she and her husband divorced… she walked away and left her boys…. it has nearly killed me…. she is now with her fiancee and expecting…. perfect family…. NO!!! but my God lives and he will keep that which I have committed unto him against that day!!! Your words have brought all of this into a different perspective for me…. God bless….. a mom with a broken heart.

  190. Your words give me hope and ring true in my soul. I have always thought that the because the Lord knows everything about us He must be the one who knows our frailties inside and out as well. I feel that the Lord celebrates us in our brokenness and heals us with his grace, which transforms us into more than we ever thought possible.
    Our brokenness is a part of being human that is in all of us!

  191. We are not alone. I grew up thinking my parents were perfect. Then once I started maturing and starting my own life, I slowly began to see my parents faults. I learned a lot of things I wax not told: an affair, why we moved often, why my mom was moody and controlling. Then I got married and moved away getting a more outside perspective and learned more about myself and my family that almost tore us apart. The next year I got cancer, went through chemo , and started piecing my life back together. But God has taken all the broken pieces and is slowly using them to make me a better vessel for Him.

  192. I am a broken person and my family is broken but I still love them. I would love to win a copy of this book to see what I can do the help it.

  193. I am reminded of Steve Green’s song “Broken and Spilled Out.”
    Let us all be used by the Master.

  194. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve fallen apart–broken beyond repair in my eyes… but God always picks up the pieces and puts me back together, stronger than ever. I’ve learned that I don’t have to fear being broken–sometimes it’s just what I need! to be lovingly put back together, just the way I need to be.

  195. I come from a broken family and went from one bad relationship to another to another… leaving a trail of my broken heart along the way until I feel like an empty shell. I am beginning to think that with some of us… God needs to allow us to break until we see the need for Him and until we are willing to surrender all to Him. I had come to think that I could do whatever I needed to do to survive… somewhere along the way I realized that my life was in a million pieces and that I could never even begin to pick it up all by myself. I need help and this book might be part of God’s plan for me to lead me to healing. I would love to win a copy.

  196. Yes-broken…but as Matthew west’s song says “lay all your shattered pieces down and be amazed at how grace can take a broken girl and put her back together again”
    I’m learning to place the shattered pieces in His hands.
    I love how you wrote “God holds each family close, crying with his wounded children, tenderly assembling and reassembling fallen fragments, creating us into better versions of ourselves.”
    He brings beauty from ashes.
    Beauty in broken.
    Would love to read your book!

  197. You are definitely not alone. We all hold in hurts, maybe that we don’t even know about, that breaks us. Thankful for God who draws us to Himself and hold us no matter what.

  198. What I find so amazing is that I come from a wonderful, healthy family, and Praise God for a sweet childhood. However my children were not so Blessed, their father left us and I found myself a single mother raising two children. They are adults now and I did the best I could, having no major problems, they are wonderful, good children. But, my brokenness has caught up to me now. Once I was strong and able to be mom and dad, handled each issue with grace and strength. As of lately I can not seem to even care for myself. My children are having a terrible time accepting that the strong mother they relied upon – seems to be gone. I would love to find her again…maybe through the insights in your words /experiences I can do just that!

    I would LOVE to read your book!

  199. I came from an almost broken home – my parents separated when I was 14 for almost a year. They did get some help and reunite after that period, but it affected our family. I am not sure they have been that happy over the years, but they have stuck it out because they felt God wanted them to do so. My brother has had 2 broken marriages and it was difficult and painful with those two broken relationships for our whole family (long story). I do understand brokenness and I truly believe God can use all those broken pieces can be turned over and used to help others who are broken. I think it is impossible to comfort another if one has never hurt or felt pain in their lives or hearts?

    I would love to read your book and share it with others!

    Blessings and thank you for this opportunity!

  200. There is no perfect family. I am so glad God loves us and longs to pour Himself into us. You are so not alone. Thank you for addressing this topic

  201. sitting here alone at my computer, I’ve opened an email from my daughter in response to my question today of visiting her for a winter break. she says now wouldn’t be a good time. she and her husband are in the midst of separating. broken? very…

    and H Sp saw fit to have me open your email before closing my email…
    thx for writing and posting

  202. I am so broken.
    I come from brokenness and I speak now from brokenness.
    My marriage is done.
    I don’t know where to start over.
    I’m barely hanging on.

    • Oh sweet one. Can you reach out to someone NOW? You are not alone. And you need to know that. God is right there. And likely…he has a human being to demonstrate his care for you. Think of who you might contact…and do it now?

  203. I need this book desperately. My very broken family has completely crumbled in the last three days. It’s an awful long story for such a short period of time. I’ll make it as brief as I can.

    I gave birth to my fifth and final child last Wednesday. I’m very emotional about the fact that I can’t have any more children and an untimely joke by my grandfather broke my heart. He said something about ‘breaking me down’ about having more kids and my mother, grandmother and other relatives laughed. Like always, I swallowed the pain and didn’t say anything about it. After I cried myself to sleep that night, my husband sent a polite message to this relative to tell them about my hurt feelings and encourage them to apologize to me.

    Instead, my grandmother intercepted the message. Our family knows she has an undiagnosed mental illness but her reaction still stunned me. Instead of showing compassion for my hurt, she told me, “I think your both mental and on drugs. Nobody keeps there house that filthy and I think it’s your husband that does it. Now why don’t you go watch porn with your loving husband that control freak of yours.”

    I’m not even joking. I copied that directly from our online conversation. That was her first response to my emotional pain. Go figure. I’ve been puzzling over that leap of logic (or lack thereof) for over 24 hours and I still can’t figure it out.

    Did I mention this was in the middle of my first night home from the hospital?

    She continued spewing insults at me for the next hour. Eventually, she riled up my grandfather. He called me, yelled at me about how he doesn’t need to apologize for anything, and then hung up. I never had the chance to speak.

    Yesterday morning, they called my mother. To make a long story short, I’ve essentially been disowned by my entire biological family because they all hate my husband… and all this because he dared to tell them that their joke hurt my feelings. He never blamed them, never said they meant to… only asked them to be more considerate. And that was, apparently, too much for our broken family to handle.

    So now I’m left with so many questions. Do I try to reconcile? I’m inclined to think not – this isn’t the first time we’ve been caught up in a fight over their dislike of my husband. What should I do if they try to reconcile with me? How can I handle this in a Christ-like way? I am still too emotionally exhausted to see any answers.

    There has never been a more important time for me to find the beauty in the broken. I would love to win a copy of this book, since payday is still a while away. I need to read it as soon as possible.

    • Oh Nicole, this is beyond words. And no 226 page book will answer all your needs here. But in time, and with help, God can. I encourage you to reach out to someone to help you through this darkness. A pastor? A counselor? A mentor? I don’t believe God intends for you to walk alone through this valley. Pray – ask him to show you who to go to and then go. Ask them to walk with you.

      • Thank you for your response! I am so grateful that I’m not alone on this journey. In addition to my wonderful husband, I also have a very supportive family of in-laws and a wonderful Church family to help me through it. I am very, very blessed even through this trial. I’m still looking forward to reading the book, though! 😉

  204. I would be ever so grateful to win a copy of this book. You are not alone. I am not alone.

  205. Waiting and waiting. Waiting in this darkness hour. The broken dysfunctional family is spreadf

  206. YES! So true … every family is broken in one way or another… My family is no different. In our instance I think it came from personal expectations. We tended to not offer grace to those closest to us unfortunately and thus it lead us to further discord, disagreements and distance. I am trying very hard in recent years to live more unconditionally and intentionally with people in my life, especially my family.

  207. wow. I so needed to read this today and I so need this book. I was just sitting here, crying thinking of the trail of brokenness I have followed and left behind me. Wishing better for my children and wallowing in my failure. It’s good to know that I’m not the only broke one.

  208. Yes, I am broken. But, I want this book for my daughter who is healing from an abusive relationship and loss of a baby. Her life feels broken to her and this mama can only help a little. She has spoken to our priest but needs more assurance that her life can be beautiful, like she is.

  209. You are not alone, my family is broken as well, but I love them even more through each trail.

  210. You are not alone. We felt so broken when our children’s spouses divorced them; when our daughter suffered with Eating Disorders for years; when she later suffered and is still suffering from alcoholism. We are broken and are trying to reach out to other broken people.

  211. Thank you for sharing your story. For a little over a year now, I have been facing the fiery trial of heartbreak and it makes me remember more and more how much we need our Wonderful Savior who was bruised and crushed for us, not only to save us from our sins but also to bear the weight of our sorrows that we can never do alone. He is so faithful, good, and true!

  212. I have learned many things in my life, but when it comes to families, we all have dysfunction and the more we try to hide it and appear normal or perfect, the more it is there and the more harmful it is. I think, for me, realizing my broken parts has helped me come to a greater realization of how much I need my Savior.

  213. Thanks for offering this, for someone like myself who struggles w/ OCD and anxiety feeling like I must always be in control and everything must be jst right. God is the only reason I’ve been off meds for 3yrs come April. Its a daily minute by minute struggle at times. But God is in control even whn our world seems to be spinning out of control.

  214. I struggle with brokenness for sure. I come from a broken family and this has been a generational issue for years. I would love this book.

  215. Thank you for offering copies of your book! I have wanted my own copy since hearing you speak at the MOPS convention this past october. Currently I am feeling very broken, physically (multiple spine surgeries over the past 2 years), emotionally broken from the pain and spiritually broken as i have not spent much time with the Lord during all the pain and distractions from the pain killers. i have had a strong desire to minister to women for almost 20 years. The past 10 have been filled with emotional and physical pain. I want God to use me but right now i can’t see how, i can barely care for my family.

  216. I feel the alone a lot. I suffer from depression and other medical issues and homebound needing the reminders that God loves me. I would love to win.

  217. Yes! I imagine this heart book will touch many in study and fellowship. Cant wait to read then share…

  218. I am starting to learn of the beauty in brokenness. It’s hard but there is so much beauty to be found if I look to Jesus. You are definitely not alone! What a great encouragement these comments are. Thanks for the chance to win!

  219. Wow…I am overwhelmed by all if the previous comments…I don’t know how you could ever choose just 5! I wish I had the resources to buy one for all of you-& me!
    In my journey of life at this point in time- I am on the other side of brokenness. By reading all of the previous comments, the Holy Spirit showed me that I AM on the other side. I have been broken. Over & over again. And I know there will be more brokenness to come. (I have 3 teens and a recovering husband!)
    I want to encourage all of you, and the ones to follow…Our God truly binds up the brokenhearted, He heals our wounds, He gives us strength & carries us when we have nothing. He alone brings peace & comfort, wisdom & direction. He saves & delivers us from ourselves, & from the choices of others. He is the Creator of all things new & He will give you a heart of flesh for your heart of stone. He will break up the fallow ground & cause new life to spring forth.
    Some reading this may ask/say…is this possible? Who does this lady think she is? Allow me to tell you…I am a broken daughter of the best Fixer-upper. I am healed. I am whole. I have cracks & scars – deep ones. But my God has given me the ability to love & be loved. Only Him. All praise to Him – the giver of all good things.
    Blessings ♡

  220. We are all broken. I would love to read more about what you have to share and then to share it with someone else!

  221. We are all broken. It’s remembering to keep all the pieces of your brokeness
    together and still allowing
    your light to shine through. Sharing your imperfections, but
    not allowing them to define you is what makes you whole and unique, and
    better. God can fix broken if we allow HIM too

  222. You are definitely not alone. Brokenness is the only way for God to put us back together again in an even more beautiful way.

  223. Being broken doesn’t mean we can’t be fixed. Sometimes it takes some extra glue (love, faith, willingness to be fixed) and trust that God is Always there for us. For the ones we love, being broken tends to break our hearts but that is why we know that our loving God is there, for all of us. Believe!
    P.S.: Children of God are never alone!

  224. I see all the comments as I scroll to the bottom if the page. Like all these other ladies I too am broken and thought I could create the perfect family. I aim for healthy and well rounded living for me and my son, to whom I parent alone. That’s ok God is faithful. A painful past left me unable and unconfident and God has restored my broke. And is my glue even when my cracks start showing again and again. I would love to win a copy so I could take into the women’s prison where I go to encourage the ladies to live past their brokenness and the bars in the joy of the Lord who sustains and remains. I too once had a prison of the world’s making and i broke out and wish that freedom upon all women because God has much for each of us.

  225. You are definitely not alone! I come from a broken family, not necessarily marked by divorce, but marked by loss (as my dad died at a young age) and the presence of many masks. I still remember seeing my parents act one way at home and one way at church, and often times I saw myself doing the same thing as I reached young adulthood. Now that I’m a mother of 3 young kids, and married to a pastor, it comes as no surprise that I find myself in that same pattern again. We’re all broken. But the beautiful thing, as you mentioned, is that God delights in picking up our pieces to make something grand! He used the broken many times in His Word, and just as He used Abrham, Moses, David, Paul, and Peter (among others), I KNOW He can, is, and will continue to use my story for His glory. Thank you for your thoughts here.

  226. I came from a background of emotional and physical abuse. Tried to raise my own perfect family and am now recovering from Cancer while raising two beautiful young boys. I needed to hear this today and would be blessed to receive your book.

  227. I’m feeling broken even now as I type. Acknowledging that none of us have it all together, we are only whole in Christ, is freeing though. Wanting the shame of broken to be gone and hoping for a brighter day of acceptance.

  228. I read so many responses and my heart breaks for everyone…I hope everyone can somehow find peace. I too am broken and in so many ways. Mainly because I am from a divorced family with a mother that gave up all her children one by one eventually including me at 12. She destroyed us emotionally and have had to do much to rebuild ourselves as adults. For many years I knew marriage and children were not for me because I feared I would do to them what was done to me and my siblings. God had a different mission for me and I am now married with 2 beautiful little girls. Everyday is a struggle hoping to continue being the wife and mother I want to be and not create the hate and emptiness my mother did to us.

  229. What a community is found here. I come from a broken family, and struggle daily to be a “good” and holy wife and mother. I fail, daily. And yet, Jesus is there, when I call on His name…and He alone makes such beauty from ashes.

  230. Hi Elisa,
    Wow, your post really hit home for me. My earthly father and mother were far from perfect and ended up in divorce. I thought I could create a healthy life and repeated their broken marriage in my life. I have lived in the brokenness and at times felt unfixable. I rely on my Father in heaven so I can heal. Now hoping and praying to win a copy of your book to continue this slow process of healing. Thank you for the opportunity.
    God Bless you!
    Christine

  231. I think I am just now ~ at 51 and 5/6ths ~ realizing just how broken I am and how not just the broken family I grew up in changed me, but how it impacted my own marriages (yes, plural). I’ve struggled harder this past few months trying to come to terms with my brokenness instead of just making it worse. Every day is a struggle for me to accept myself as I am, and not as who I think I should be.

  232. We’re not alone! Not you, not me – for all eternity – He will forever be – right beside us into eternity! I think in songs – the one that is popping into my head is What a Beautiful Mess We’re In. He is soveriegnly in control of our beautiful messes – we may think for a moment that it feels like we are – but He IS! And He holds us and helps us and He is building in us a beautiful tapestry of His chosen grace! I forget … way too quickly…. way too often. What glorious grace that He was broken for our transgressions that we might experience His loving countenance always! May He continue to strengthen us to see the beauty that He has created brokeness to be – ours and much more importantly – HIS. It would be a blessed encouragement to read your book.

  233. You would not believe how broken my family is if I told you. It is so epic it seems unreal. I could write my own book and maybe someday I will. I would love to read your book. I think all of us here, sharing that we are broken, makes each of us feel a little less alone.

  234. I cannot wait to get this book. Mosaics are one of my favorite art forms. “Beauty from brokenness” is a phrase I hold dear to my heart. Not only have I come from brokenness, inflicted brokenness, but I have realized that we must allow ourselves to be broken for the Father to make us whole in Christ.

  235. My Dad was an alcoholic(not a mean one, a sleepy one) and could never admit it. My Mom stuck it out in the marriage until her death. Broken not with divorce but seeing my parents have a platonic marriage as pain and anger took over instead of healing and closeness. It has been a long time since both my parents died but how seeing their relationship ended up it definitely had an impact on me.

  236. Where does brokeness end? How does brokeness end? I am helping to raise two granddaughters and they go between our home and their fathers home. When I send them to school, I have to put clothes in their backpacks to wear back to our home. Once, they didn’t need any clothes in thier backpack and when I told the one granddaughter she said, “Finally, I can be normal.” It broke my heart!

  237. Dear Elisa,
    I remember feeling so alone for years because I thought that I was the only one who was broken & from a broken family. You, duplicated so many of my thoughts. I came from a family where my father, who was an alcoholic, abused all of 5 children & my mom. For the girls, this included sexual abuse. My mom also struggled with alcohol twice. I was the #4 in the order of children. Since I was about 5 I remember thinking that maybe I could protect and fix my mom & siblings’ hearts. I planned the same type of family of my own while growing up. God loved me through it all. I learned that the most important thing was to live and love as Jesus with His guidance before my family & friends as best that I could. I knew that somehow, God would use my brokenness (as He told me). I ended up being a single mom after 12 yrs. of marriage. We all cannot be perfect but I’ve seen how God can use me to reach out to others . I’m thankful because Jesus uses me in sharing my brokenness 1 on 1 with people while He brings people in my path who like to connect with someone who can relate to their situation . I am honored to be directed and used by the Lord as a tool for help and encouragement! Even now with physical disability , which is more brokenness to me, I am worthy of being His tool. There’s no greater joy!

    • By the way Elise, I don’t want a copy of your book.There are so many here who need it. I will read it one day.
      Remember dear ladies, that with God all things are possible. God will never forsake you or leave you. He alone, gives you hope. Many times , I felt like there was no hope & there isn’t always enough of it in our world. I’ve heard it said that just when you are about to give up, God’s victory is just around the corner! I loved this passage,actually the whole chapter, and read it multiple times for comfort : Isaiah 61:3 (HCSB)
      61:3 ” to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the LORD to glorify Him. ”
      Hugs, Mary

  238. You are not alone. I came from a broken family and have a broken family of my own. I would love to read this book. It give me assurance that i am not alone in this journey! Thanks for the giveaway!

  239. Elise,

    Thank you for sharing your testimony. Praise God you are willing to be used by Him for greater purposes!

    Everyone comes from a broken family of sorts. We all have faults and are not perfect. But with God and His love for us –we can be made whole!

    Blessings 🙂

  240. I am from a broken family and with the love of my husband and finding god I no longer feel broken

  241. i just watched the trailer of your book. beautiful. the hope and restoration only God can bring.

    I look forward to reading your book.

  242. I was married with two boys, now I’m nearly divorced (takes 2 years here in nz). My husband had multiple affairs with strangers he met through the internet, but what really broke us was the arguing. Somehow I thought I had to bring him around. I was already broken and probably should never have married. I have hated myself for years and it seemed like a confirmation of all the things I have been ashamed of, and all my nastiness came out when saw betrayal. I want to believe that god has hope and a future for my family and for me, but why should he? It’s my fault.

  243. I too come from a broken home and feel like so many times I struggle with my current family due to the hurts of my past. Thank you for your strength to write a book of your story to help/heal others.

  244. I always look forward to reading books about forgiveness. I am most especially interested in forgiving those who have hurt me when I was a young girl and continue to hurt me as an adult. I am in the process of putting distance between those whom have hurt me because it has been getting toxic to my immediate family, husband and kids.

    It is a difficult process because I firmly believe in forgiveness but I need to learn how to separate myself and my family from toxic relationships.

    Thank you for sharing your story! God bless you!