Right now, nearly every person I know seems to be touched by tragedy, heartbreak, death, disease, or storms that have shattered their peace. I’m constantly asking God “How can I possibly help them, when I’m going through so much of my own stuff?” He reassures me it’s not ME who can help anyone; rather, it is HIM through me. Ah, my friend, in this devotional I want to share the glorious testimony of the myriad of blessings of brokenness. God is allowing me to see how critical it is to stay emptied of self-reliance if I want to have full access to His power, wisdom, and love.
It is in my own brokenness that I am discovering my greatest blessings!
This remarkable lesson springs directly from the words of Jesus:
“The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces MUCH grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will HONOR.”
John 12:23-26
When we, as born-again believers, die to self in EVERY area of our life, and we allow the crushing experiences of life to strip us down to the bedrock foundation of Jesus Christ, then—we have something truly remarkable to offer those who are suffering—even when we are also suffering. But if we remain as an uncracked grain of wheat—we have very limited use. Jesus reminds us…an unbroken life can offer nothing to those who are broken. The world around us is teeming with brokenness! If we want to help, we MUST come to the end of ourselves; that is, where every single human security is gone and every single human prop is knocked out from under us. This must happen BEFORE we can realize that we ARE dependent upon God for everything. It is then—we WILL see the power of God break loose in our life.
Only broken people—who get their power from God—help other broken people see God for who He truly is!
If we fail to surrender in ANY area of our life—that is the area we will NOT see the power of God. We will fail to allow our seed to crack wide open. We will hinder our fruitfulness. We will limit the power of God in our life. While the breaking process is painful—but it is SO worth it! If we are really serious about Jesus Christ moving through us to change the world, we must have a serious grip on our supernatural faith and be willing to pay the cost.
What does the process of being broken look like?
It’s when we get to the place where we realize…
WE have no more self-wisdom;
WE have no more self-resourcefulness;
WE have no more self-sufficiency; and
WE have no more self-reliance!
The only thing we know to do is to turn our eyes up and say “God, You are my ONLY plan. I don’t have a spare plan.” In that bedrock experience, we allow God to bring us to the end of ourselves. We come to the end of all our resources, and we begin the process of shifting our trust from the areas of our life where we feel STRONG—our job, our health, our children, our marriage, our finances, our academic ability, our leadership ability, our strength, our beauty, our courage, or our popularity—to CHRIST alone. God strips away those areas where our flesh feels the strongest and most confident and shows us just how frail our life is without Him. Everything in this world is temporary except the souls of humanity and what we do for God’s glory.
“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall NOT be remembered or come to mind.”
Isaiah 65:17
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
1 John 2:15-17
We CANNOT rely upon the things of this world. God does us a huge favor when He allows us to be broken. In the areas where you feel strongest—pray for God to allow you to be broken—right there. That “strength” is just holding you back from experiencing the full power of God.
Any “strength” we have is only a “weakness” unless it is 100% yielded to God!
Paul the Apostle recognized this remarkable truth and he got it straight from God:
“And He [God] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
“Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Tomorrow, I will share my own personal story of God’s work through brokenness. I pray my journey encourages you to enter into this remarkable blessing as well!
We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.
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2 Responses
In my brokenness almost 10 years ago I found God. I had been saved since I was 10 but it wasn’t until then that I truly discovered God and I praise Him and love Him more and more every single day. All praise and glory be to God forever and ever. Amen
Amen! So grateful you shared!