hope

When Brokenness Transforms Into Testimony…

/ www.LivingLarger.life

Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. When I approached the Throne of the Living God to offer my Praise, my thanks, and to make my requests known, I began to weep over where I’ve been and where I am today. I thought about the brokenness that has washed over my Life and I saw a clear Picture of how that brokenness shaped me for my Service to Him today. When God Decides to do a deeper Work in our Lives, Brokenness is always part of the Process, so He’ll bring Circumstances to drive us to our knees. BUT God doesn’t force us to a place of Brokenness…and we can’t force our way there on our own…we CHOOSE to Surrender to it instead. What an Amazing God I serve who Loves me enough to Grow me to a place where I can see the Power behind the Brokenness. Isn’t that the way you see it, too?

It’s mind-boggling to consider the brokenness people go through without ever reaching that point of Surrendering to Him by choice. Oh, plenty of people will Proclaim that God saw them through a tough time – or that He was always there – but very few ever PROCLAIM that they reached the absolute end of themselves and that they willingly Surrendered to the God of all Creation for a Purpose much greater than themselves. We’re more inclined to brag about being “survivors” instead of Proclaimers of Victory…because of the Brokenness, NOT despite it. Paul had to be led to Brokenness on the road to Damascus…that place where we stop excusing or rationalizing…that place where we KNOW He is EVERYTHING and we Surrender our all to Him. Joseph had to be taken to that place when He was thrown into a pit and left to die. Jacob had to be taken to Brokenness when He left his homeland a destitute and needy man. Every single beautiful Vessel we read about in His Word – every beautiful Vessel we’re fortunate enough to meet in this Journey of Life, has reached the place of Brokenness, and they CHOSE to Surrender. This is where Powerful Testimonies and rich Work for the Lord are found.

If I had to guess the reason WHY so many people have been led to Brokenness and yet REFUSE to be Broken for the Lord, I’d say it’s P R I D E. We would rather take credit for how strong we are than take credit for how Broken we have become in the Process. We’d rather hold onto the reins as we desperately try to control our lives than to drop those reins in the dust and Confess that we are absolutely Powerless without Him. We’d rather tell Him what we want the future to look like than to “blindly” Trust Him with it…and to be Excited without even knowing the Details. We’d rather move on from the Brokenness and live as if it never happened than to shout from the Mountaintops about the God who loves us enough to Break us. Brokenness is how He Builds His Vessels – but His people ALWAYS choose to be broken OR they blow it off as merely a “tough time.” Brokenness is where Powerful Testimonies are threaded together in His Name. Brokenness is where Strong Vessels are shaped and ministries are born. The Greatest Work of our Lord comes through His people WILLING to be Broken and then built back into something Beautiful. This is the Key to being Refined for the King, and yet, P R I D E keeps so many people from shamelessly sharing the Work of the Lord in their lives.

I wouldn’t trade the Brokenness experience in my Journey for anything in the world, and I’m glad I Surrendered my all to Him. When I share pieces of my life…and it’s been a wild one…sometimes people are shocked that I share without shame as if it has no Purpose now that it’s in the past. But Jesus paid the Price for my sin and my shame, so why would I still be carrying it around? Jesus Christ allowed me to be Broken to Glorify Himself! He Knew before the foundations of the earth that One Day I would crawl out of the valley and climb to the mountaintop to PRAISE HIS Holy Name to the world. Pride went out the window a long time ago when I made the choice to be Broken so that I could be Built back up into a Usable Vessel for the Lord Jesus Christ. I KNOW that there is “no good thing in me apart from Him,” and I KNOW that I am absolutely Powerless on my own. Freedom, Love, Joy, Peace, Strength, and Victory are ALL the result of having been taken to the breaking point and CHOOSING to be Broken.

What about you?

Ride of Terror OR Journey for Jesus?

/ www.LivingLarger.life

Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. It’s a glorious morning in Virginia and I can finally feel Spring in the air. You never know what to expect this time of year – sometimes it’s warm and sometimes it’s cold but it’s almost always windy – so windy, in fact, that the flags seemed to “fight” to hang on to their proper place on the front porch. I enjoy watching the flags “fight” to stay where they belong knowing that eventually, each one will succumb to the damage they’ve sustained over time by the high winds. One by one they’ll be replaced with a newer fresher flag…but that’s not true for man. Man can never get to the point of no return in the eyes of God and God will never give up on His “flags” no matter how much damage they get through the Journey. Each man is made for a unique Purpose with a Flight Plan to follow that is intended just for him. With that in mind, why do so many people face the storms as if they’re on a ride of terror instead of on the Journey for Jesus? Flags are flags and nothing is expected of them but to make a statement and bring us pleasure…BUT man has a Choice. Man can choose to Trust the One that calms the seas OR to fly haphazardly through the Journey of Life until he wears out and gets replaced by someone willing to do the Work God created him to do. Isn’t that the way you see the Journey of Life too?

We are a part of a disposable society and, unfortunately, we have been conditioned to believe that everything can be replaced. We don’t attempt to fix cars, computers, or cell phones because they lose value in our eyes, and besides, it’s too much fun to replace them instead. We toss food that could feed a hungry family and we pitch clothes in the trash just for missing a button that could have easily been mended to make good for someone else. Yep, we’re in a disposable society BUT there’s a problem with that mindset…it’s not in alignment with the Nature of our God. He has a Plan in mind for each of us and He’ll sometimes allow us to flap around in the wind to build the strength it takes to get the Job done, AND to see if we’ll choose to GO or GROW. When we choose to GROW, He’ll calm the winds faster than you can say “Amen” and it won’t take long for us to see what God was Teaching us all along. But for those who choose to GO because they’re too selfish or lazy to endure a little “flapping around” in His Name, they’ll eventually be replaced by a Servant Willing to do the Job that you were created to do. How sad it is that your Kingdom Work could be Assigned to someone else because you would rather flap around in the wind uncontrollably instead of calling upon the Name of Jesus to calm the storm and lead the way.

It’s sad to see so many people professing to know my God but so unwilling to do His Work. If boldly flapping in the breeze like the flags on my front porch means they might endure a little pain in the process…they want nothing to do with it. If their season of flapping around in the breeze lasts longer than they think is “fair” they’ll dispose of God and move on to the next “solution” without blinking an eye. Some people will do as little as they think they can to get by instead of striving to hear “Well done, good and faithful servant” one day the way I do. I’m a born-again Believer and I am confident that I can’t lose my Salvation BUT I Know (based on His Word) that some people will make it into Heaven just by the skin of their teeth and they’ll sit on the sideless of Glory for eternity because of it. The choice is mine. I want a front-row seat in Glory. I can live like a flag on the front porch with absolutely no control over my destiny OR I can make the Choice to Fight Back…to Sustain…to Endure…to Persevere…to No matter how much flapping around I have to do in the Process. He’s worth it. I’m worth it. The Journey is worth it. Glory is worth it.

How about you?

Blend in with the world? NEVER!

/ www.LivingLarger.life

Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. It’s that time of year when almost everything I see from the front porch is the same color. The foliage is turning brown and falling to the ground and the deer get a new gray coat color for the winter…God’s way of helping them avoid danger by blending in. Sometimes the flags are the only bright colors I see and they’re kept hanging all year because of it. As I sat there this morning considering all the things I can see throughout the winter (and all the things I can’t) I was reminded of how that’s the way it can be in the Journey of Faith too. The Goal of a Person of Faith isn’t to “blend in” but to STAND OUT through every Season of Life, and if we aren’t careful, we could eventually blend in with all the rest while we ride out the Winter Season. How can the dark world see the Bright Morning Star in us if we’re blending in with it? Don’t you want the world to see the Color of your Faith all year round too?

The winter season often comes on with a vengeance – one day it’s warm and the next day it’s cold but it seems to strike and stay once it’s here. One day you’re outside celebrating the warmth and the next day you’re hiding away from the cold. One day the trees are covered with leaves, and the next day the leaves are gone and there’s absolutely nothing we can do to stop it. But the Winter of the Heart is a different story. That season is so subtle that most people don’t even realize the Heart has gone from Celebrating the Warmth of the Son to a Heart that’s as cold as the winter in Virginia. Many of them continue to do the same things they did in the Summer of their Faith – like going to church and praying even though the Heart is in Spiritual hibernation. That doesn’t make any more sense than wearing shorts and a T-shirt outside in the winter as if wearing those things will make it so. The Heart that was once so eager to Celebrate the Son can’t be seen in those hibernating despite the steps they take as part of their “routine” like tuning into church or a bumper sticker on their car. From cold to warm and back again. It must break God’s Heart when He sees His people much more determined to blend in with all the rest than to Stand up in the Mighty Name of Jesus.

When we’re in Celebration mode, we want EVERYBODY around us to feel the Warmth of the Son too and we could never be satisfied with blending in! We encourage others to FOLLOW us to the Warmest spot there is, and we give them Directions on how to get there. When we’re in Celebration mode, EVERYTHING around us is in Living Color, and we don’t want anybody else to miss out on what God has for those Willing to stand out in His Name. When we’re in Celebration mode we STAND OUT in any crowd and they SEE Him in us even if we opt-out of uttering His Name. Unfortunately, many have been deceived into believing that as long as they’re “nice” there’s no need to speak up at all. When we’re in Celebration mode, we dance and we weep with Joy and we don’t care who’s watching. When we’re in Celebration mode we can’t get enough of the Son and we almost don’t want to go to sleep as long as there’s more to learn. That’s what Love looks like.

The church can be a great social club filled with the friends we love more than any others and we aren’t afraid to show and tell them most of the time. But when the Heart is Celebrating the Son, it cares a WHOLE LOT MORE about all the ones OUTSIDE the walls of the church who have never Met the Bright Morning Star than do about socializing on Sundays – those guys NEVER lose their hunger to Share Him with the world. God speaks Boldly about what it looks like when the Heart of His People is no longer more committed to blending in than Standing out. He doesn’t beat around the bush or make excuses like so many of His people do, that’s for sure! This is what He says, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked”. Leave it to God to get Straight to the Point and leave it to the lost ones to overlook the Truth.

I weep over the ones so determined to take the same steps over and over again doing all those things they believe are a sign of their Love for the Living God but their Growth is thwarted and they likely won’t make their way into Heaven unless they have a Heart overhaul. They’ve allowed the cold to set in and they’re no longer Celebrating the Son with PASSION AND RECKLESS LOVE the way they did in the beginning. I pray for REVIVAL for the ones who are no longer Celebrating the Son along with all those who have yet to HEAR, because their Destiny will likely be the same. As long as there is breath in my body I’ll be Celebrating the Son and nothing about me will BLEND IN with the rest because of it. I want EVERYBODY to have what I have before it’s too late for them – so I’ll be BOLDLY Celebrating in and OUT of the church all the days of my Life. God forbid that He would ever look at me and see me as “neither hot nor cold” – a place so vile that He would be inclined to “spit” me out of His mouth.

How about you?

How About A Walk Down Broken Lane?

/ www.LivingLarger.life

Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. When I met with the Living God this morning to give my Praise, my Thanks, and to make my Requests known, I was feeling a little inadequate to accomplish all that He has for me in this Journey called Life. So, the Author and Perfecter of my Faith walked me down Broken Lane to remind me of how Strong I really am and just how it came to be. There are lots of things in the past I’d much rather forget…at least in the human sense…but the Hand of God brought calamity my way many times in my life…not to break me…but to Build me into a Usable Vessel and to make me strong for Him. I went from feeling inadequate to BELIEVING I have everything it takes to Serve the King of kings…ALL because of my brokenness. Isn’t that the way you look at your life too?

It can be so easy for most people to throw in the towel when they experience brokenness, but they miss out on all the Strength that can be found in Victory when they do. Some people shake their fists at God and demand answers when calamity strikes, and some people hide under the bed. Some people spend what seems like forever “asking” for answers for why the trials showed up in the first place, while others are consumed with self-pity because God is being so “mean.” Some people gloss over the “break” experience as if it’s just a minor setback and they’ll brush it off without a second thought. Some people experience brokenness but they stay so busy trying to hide it from the world that they miss out on the Beauty that is just around the corner if they’ll just let go and let God do what God does best. It makes me sad to see all those wounded people so clueless about the process and it makes me even sadder to know that they can’t be Used by the King as long as they remain on Broken Lane. God takes Brokenness and Spins it into Strength IF we just accept the Purpose behind the storms.

I wish I could have avoided the pain and suffering of Broken Lane, but I wouldn’t be a Strong Vessel for Him today had He not taken me there to Shape me into what He needs me to be. I find comfort when I read about all those Saints of the Bible who were Broken for His Purpose too – like Paul on the road to Damascus and David after his sin with Bathsheba…and the list could go on and on…people He walked down Broken Lane JUST so they could become Strong in His Name. Brokenness doesn’t end well UNLESS we accept His Purpose for our lives in the good times AND in the bad ones too. It takes understanding that brokenness comes with a Purpose much bigger than we can see on this side of Heaven…but we never fulfill the Purpose if we aren’t willing to look at Brokenness for what it really is…a chance to be Readied for Service….an Opportunity to become Stronger than ever. I’m not sure if I’d refer to what God does as a “test” but He definitely forces us to flex our Spiritual Muscles to make us Stronger. The Author and Perfecter of my Faith has a Perfect Master Plan and He longs for each one of His children to be willing to walk down Broken Lane with Purpose! Will we become weaker or stronger in the end? Will we see Broken Lane as a sign of a “mean” God or a testimony we’re willing to share with someone traveling down Broken Lane too?

I started off this new day feeling inadequate for the Job, but He set me Straight by walking me down Broken Lane all over again. He reminded me of where He’s taken me and how Strong I really am in His Name. He Encouraged me with Heavenly Reminders that I have EVERYTHING I need to do what He’s Called me to do and that Victory is mine. I Serve Him well…I Love Him and Trust Him completely…and I’m grateful for Broken Lane….the place where I found my Strength through Him. I’m a Vessel for the Living God…an Ambassador for Jesus Christ. I’m a force to reckon with in His Name…and it all began with brokenness.

“The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength.” – 1 Samuel 2:4