God's Pathway of Brokenness, Pt. 5

For God to use us more for His kingdom purposes and for His glory means there will be much less of us and much more of Jesus.

God's Pathway of Brokenness, Pt. 5

"For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren."

(Romans 8:29)

While preaching on this principle of God using brokenness as the pathway to being more like Jesus, Dr. Charles Stanley had a word for those who wish God would use them: he said to be careful. He preached that when you surrender to the brokenness process, God will use you so powerfully that you will say, "Slow down Jesus!"

For God to use us more for His kingdom purposes and for His glory means there will be much less of us and much more of Jesus. To be conformed into the image of Jesus (Romans 8:29) means to be fashioned to look more like Jesus. In this conformity process, God removes more and more of what does not resemble His Son. The result is that we are broken and humbled and yet very prepared for God to use us powerfully. God uses weak vessels, not proud, self-sufficient ones.

Dr. Stanley listed the following reasons why we resist this pathway of brokenness:

Pride. It seems this is the besetting sin of so many Christians. It is one we must fight daily. But for God to use us, He must first remove that which Scripture says He hates. Proverbs 8:13 states, "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate."
Ignorance. Many have never been taught this principle that to be broken is to be conformed into the image of Christ and be made usable for His service. Stanley used the following analogy: For us to enjoy eating biscuits, the dough must be mashed and rolled. In brokenness, God is in the process of doing something awesome in us.
Fear. We think of the worst things possible, but it all has a grand purpose from God's viewpoint. As He refines us, He is making it possible for Him to use us.
Worldly entanglements. God breaks us and pulls us away from things that harm us and others.
Unhealthy relationships. We have to be willing to let go of anything or anyone that would impede our growing more into the image of Christ.
Rebellious spirit. Satan has a stronghold in people's lives in this very area, but it has to be broken.

Are you being conformed daily into the image of Christ? If you resist God working in your life to break you of sinful habits that impede your growth in Him, then He will put you on the shelf. The most miserable person is the one who knows God but is not used by God. He or she has all the talent, but God is not using them because they refuse to be broken. God does not rejoice in shelving us; rather, He wants to use us.

Ask the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart. I encourage you to surrender your will to God's plan for your life. He will shape you into the image of His Son. The process is painful but necessary, and the result is God using you far more than you could imagine.

As we approach the end of the year, let me again say thank you for your prayers and financial support for our ministry at DFEA. I ask that you prayerfully consider a generous year-end gift or monthly contribution so we can end the year strongly and get ready for another year of serving the Lord in this ministry. You can donate here or by clicking the button below.

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This year will mark the 20th anniversary of DFEA. My wife Ashley and I started this ministry in May 2004, and we praise the Lord for the opportunities He gives us to serve Him through DFEA.