Saturday, December 20, 2008

The Strength of Brokenness

One of my ministry opportunities: chaplain of the NNU basketball team - a fantastic group of young men and coaches.
My computer was down the last couple days. The Geek squad to the rescue. However the series I started a couple days ago, will be interrupted by a week in San Antonio with Kris and family, and Fletcher and his. So we'll continue that series in January. The next couple days will be separate topics, beginning today with some great words adapted from Os Hillman.
It has been said that the world sees broken things as useless and throws them away. God sees broken things as very valuable and uses them greatly for His Kingdom work.

There is an oxymoron throughout the Bible. It says that brokenness is strength. How can this be? How can brokenness be strength? In order to use men and women to their fullest extent, the Lord has to break His servants so that they might have a new kind of strength that is not human in origin. Broken of self will, self sufficiency, pride and anything else that keeps us from living the Christ life. It is strength in spirit that is born only through brokenness.
Paul was broken on the Damascus road. Peter was broken after Jesus was taken prisoner. Jacob was broken at Peniel. David was broken after his sin with Bathsheba. The list could go on of those the Lord had to break in different ways before they could be used in the Kingdom.
When we are broken, we see the frailty of human strength and come to grips with the reality that we can do nothing in our own strength. Then, new strength emerges that God uses mightily. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Do not fear brokenness, for it may be the missing ingredient to a life that emerges with a new kind of strength and experience not known before. Pray for a broken and contrite heart that God can bless.

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