Let Your Heart Be Broken

“Let Your Heart Be Broken” is a searching and compassionate hymn by Bryan Jeffery Leech that calls believers to a deeper awareness of human suffering and a more Christlike response to the needs of the world. Written in a late twentieth century context marked by global injustice, poverty, and violence, the hymn challenges comfortable faith and urges worshipers to allow their hearts to be moved by the same compassion that marked the ministry of Jesus.

The hymn’s central appeal is not sentimental but transformative. To have one’s heart broken is to be awakened from indifference and self protection, allowing God’s love to confront the reality of suffering neighbors both near and far. This brokenness is not despair but holy compassion, a willingness to feel the pain of others and to respond with mercy, justice, and action. The hymn reflects the biblical call to love not only in word but in deed and in truth.

Leech draws heavily on the prophetic and gospel traditions of Scripture. The hymn echoes the prophets’ concern for justice and Jesus’ own compassion for the crowds who were weary and scattered. It reminds believers that faithfulness to God cannot be separated from love for others, especially the poor, the oppressed, and the forgotten. Worship, in this vision, is inseparable from ethical living and social responsibility.

The tone of the hymn is reflective and exhortational. Rather than offering easy comfort, it invites self examination and repentance, asking whether the church has grown numb to suffering. At the same time, it offers hope by pointing toward God’s power to work through willing and compassionate hearts. Brokenness becomes the doorway to healing, service, and renewed obedience.

“Let Your Heart Be Broken” continues to speak powerfully in contemporary worship settings, especially where congregations seek to connect faith with action. Its enduring message reminds believers that to follow Christ is to share in His compassion, allowing God to shape hearts that are open, responsive, and ready to serve in love.