Jesus Is with the Brokenhearted | A Woodside Story Blog

My dad was Catholic growing up and my mom identified as Christian. We did the whole Sunday service and the occasional prayer, but it was all very surface level. I never really understood who Jesus was, why I should care about Him, or why He would care about someone like me. If anything, He felt like a concept…almost like an imaginary friend we relied on when things got hard. 

I was always a super anxious kid, and I never really felt safe in my body or safe in my environment. When I was six years old, we moved from Mexico to Michigan. It was a big culture and language shock. We uprooted our entire lives to be here, and we were virtually alone, which certainly didn’t help with the anxiety. 

As I got older, I kept getting farther and farther away from the whole Jesus thing. My identity became rooted in anxiety…in this belief that I wasn’t good enough and I wasn’t worthy. Eventually, the anxiety led to depression. I tried to do anything I could to numb everything I was going through.  

By 2023, I had made up my mind that life just wasn’t for me. I felt like I had tried everything, and it just wasn’t working out. At that time, someone in my life took me under their wing. They were a family of believers, and I had always thought they were a Hallmark kind of family. It wasn’t until I started attending Woodside Bible Church livestreams with this friend that I realized the biggest difference between their life and mine was that Jesus was at the center. The way they loved each other and carried themselves through life planted a seed of hope.  

I started asking my friend to pray for me, but I was still caught up in the chaos of my previous life and all the choices I had made. 

He’s a Light in a Dark Room 

In 2024, I landed in the hospital and that’s where I really began to pray. When you’re in the lowest of lows, it feels like there’s no way up…but the Bible says all you need is a mustard seed of faith. 

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that Jesus is among the brokenhearted. To me, it’s like a light that shines the brightest in a dark room. I wasn’t the only one in the hospital who was hurting, and every other week or so, someone would come in to talk to us about Scripture. I didn’t necessarily participate, but I would show up. That curiosity had been planted in my heart. 

There was also this little grandpa, an older guy. The first time we made contact, the very first thing he said to me was “Jesus loves you.” He just looked at me and said it. It’s not a wild thing to say, but little things like that are where I began to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  

When I got out of the hospital, I thought “You know what, let me give this Jesus guy a shot.” I wanted to see what this Bible thing was. Within three months, I had chosen to go all in. The way Jesus presented Himself in my life was so obvious. I would have been a fool to look at  the way He was moving in my heart and decide not to follow Him. 

Now I Have a Life Worth Living 

My life didn’t become all rainbows and butterflies, but He helped me with the shame and guilt I had been carrying on my shoulders. Little by little, He started to unload that burden. Community had always been a deep hurt because I grew up feeling alone. The closer I got to Jesus, the more people He placed in my life so I could feel His love through them.  

Over the past two years, my heart and perspective on Jesus, the world, and myself have really changed. Jesus is my life. He is the firm foundation I stand on. He replaced my desperation with this joyful curiosity.  

My first thought in the mornings used to be, “Why am I alive?” Even in the beginning stages of getting to know Jesus, I would confess that to Him: “Jesus, I still feel like I don’t want to be here.” Now I am genuinely happy that I have a life worth living. It’s still hard to fully understand how He did that.  

Now I know I have a purpose. I’m hopeful to see what Jesus will continue to do, not only in me, but hopefully through me too. He meets you where you’re at and He’s so tender beyond our understanding. All He did was literally say, “Come to Me as you are.” 

Editor’s Note: If you’re struggling with anxiety, depression, or thoughts of suicide, you don’t have to face it alone. Call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or click here to get in touch with Woodside’s care ministries.