Broken For Jesus
Life is a blessing from our heavenly creator. This does not mean that life is always full of happy and good times. Life in all honestly can be ugly and messy – Life can break us, if we let it. God created us with a need and a dependency for him. It takes some of us longer to realize that God is all that we need.
Life is full of emotions and events – some good and some not so much. While we cannot always control how we feel, it is when we are walking hand in hand with Jesus, we can have healthy emotions. God created us and he created emotions. Some emotions are easy to get stuck in – God did not create emotions for us to become stuck in or on but for us to be able to express ourselves; in healthy manners.
There are things in life that can and will break us. This breaking is a peeling back of the layers. Imagine peeling the layers of an onion, one by one. There is a purpose in doing this when using an onion. The same way when God uses you, he peels back the layers, one by one. The peeling is a season of coming undone – the ways of this world that shaped who you are slowly – or in some instances quickly – are peeled back. Your eyes are open to God’s word, which is TRUTH and LIFE. The worldly ways start to become less appealing as you can see them for what they really are.
The process of coming undone can be from:
- Our own bad choices
- Experiencing the results of other people’s bad choices
- God showing us his heart (his will for our lives)
When bad things happen in life it is easy to say things like “life is unfair”, “why do the bad people have it all”, “I give up”, “what’s the point”.
Oh, but my friend this is looking at life through a worldly lens. Whatever causes you to become undone know that God will use it for his good. In the midst of coming undone it does not feel good or right. It is in this process that you are gracefully broken for God’s will, for God’s kingdom. The enemy tries to push the worldly view and standards on everyone that will listen. Make no mistake the enemy will stop at nothing to get you walking away from God, walking away from the blessings God has instore for you. The enemy wants the world full of people that are entitled, offended, hurt, scared, and enraged. The enemy wants to keep you focused on yourself and the wrongs that you have experienced. The enemy wants to keep you stuck – on yourself.
God calls each one of us to simply reach out to him. To call on his name and believe in who he is. In the middle of becoming undone is when the battle becomes ever so important. Will you allow the faith you have be broken – or will you allow the faith you have to come to LIFE. Will you allow the world and the enemy to lead you astray or will you seek out your heavenly creator and see what it is he has to offer, perhaps for the first time, with an authentic heart posture. Coming undone is not a punishment, but a gift that only God can turn into beauty.
Coming undone is being gracefully broken for God. At first it might sound completely incorrect, gracefully broken, how can that even be a thing? It takes a heart posture with a renewed mind and an open heart to look at your circumstances differently. As stated earlier, life is hard and sometimes messy. This is true for the believer and unbeliever. This is true for the follower of Jesus and the follower of the world.
The choice is yours – do you want to be undone so you can be stuck on life being unfair, on ruminating on the wrongs that have been done to you, against you, living a life full of anger and on a rampage; never feeling any better, never moving forward? OR do you want to be undone so you can live life on FIRE for your heavenly creator – living a life chasing after Jesus and all that he has to offer? Letting becoming undone – gracefully broken – be what opened your eyes to what life is really all about – JESUS. The trials here on earth will be many regardless of which path you choose however your outlook, your view, your
understanding of this world and the one to come will be deeply changed. The ways of the world will become foreign. You will be filled will a compassion and a love for others. Your focus will become outward instead of inward. No longer will you be focused on what can the world do for you, but what can you do for Jesus – for his kingdom?
Pause and make this choice very carefully. If you are unsure of what all of this means open your bible, that was placed on the bookshelf years ago. Make that courageous decision to check out that church you feel God calling you too. Ask that family member, friend, or coworker, who’s been trying to get you to hear about a man named Jesus, for a cup of coffee and engage in a conversation that just might change your life.
Being gracefully broken can look different in each one of our lives. Make sure to not compare or judge someone else’s life – it’s their story and if you ask, they just might share their gracefully broken story. I encourage you to see how your life is being gracefully broken and lean into all that God has to offer.
Jennifer Lull