Brokenness

Scripture

Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon… While He was eating a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard. She broke open the jar and poured the perfume over his head.

~Mark 14:3, NLT

Quote

We throw broken things in the garbage but God uses broken things.

~Adrian Rogers

Indeed, God does use broken things and people. The perfume’s fragrance was locked inside the earthen jar; the only way of getting it out was to break the jar. Once this woman broke the jar, the fragrance filled the room. If you remember the story of Gideon, they had lamps underneath clay jars and at Gideon’s command, they broke the jars and the light came forth. Paul told the Corinthians, We have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves. He told the Galatians, “My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you.” He told the Colossians, “Christ is in you and that is your hope for glory.” He also told them in chapter three, “When the Christ in you is revealed, everyone will see the glory.” If you know Jesus as your personal LORD and Savior, His light and love are in you but these clay bodies are a hindrance. Many do not see the light or the glory in us; matter of fact, there are times when we don’t see it either. What does it take to get the precious perfume of Jesus love out of our earthen vessels–WE HAVE TO BE BROKEN.

Take the patriarch Jacob for example: he became a believer at Bethel but his faith didn’t really come out until he wrestled with the Angel of God who broke his hip. This broken hip put Jacob in a fix: he could neither fight nor flee. He could not wrestle or run. The was a defining moment in the Patriarch’s life. He became totally dependent on God and His grace. From this point on, Jacob learned to lean. He died leaning on his staff {walking stick}. God uses brokenness to bring us closer to Him and to make us a witness to others. Jacob left home arrogant and proud but he returned like the Prodigal–humble and broken. How did Jesus feed the multitudes? With bread that was broken and blessed. When we make an offering of our lives to Jesus and His kingdom, He takes them, breaks them, blesses them and then uses them to feed the multitudes. I knew a young woman once who was crushed by the mean spirited of an unfaithful husband. The way he ended their relationship was cruel and she was ashamed and humiliated. She told me herself, in so many word, “My credibility is shot, I will never be able to stand before others again.” I said, “No, you are wrong about that…God will open a ministry for you and it will come from your pain. God will use you now more than ever.”

Getting your heart broke is a pain that I don’t wish on anyone but it is not the end: in the Kingdom of God, it is the beginning.

Extra

Praise the LORD for another great weekend. We had a great crowd at the point, 39 cars. I think our record is 47 and we only had around 30 last week. I prepared for bitter cold but it was not that bad. The weather forecast changes from day to day. We will be outside again this Sunday and we may even extend it a couple of more weeks; try to let this variant run its course and move on {we hope}. Jean Narrell is in CRMC and very sick with covid like symptoms. She has tested negative twice but the doctors are afraid she has covid. Gregg had a hard week and has two more treatments this week. Mrs. Sarah had a difficult week as well with a lot of back pain. Mrs. Leona was at drive-in worship yesterday. Mr. Kay Edmonson is at Riverside in Decatur. Brandon and Sue Orm also ask us to pray for their friend having surgery today. Her first name is Ann.

TOP TEN

{Reasons not to trust Earthly Treasures}

  1. They can deceive you, causing you to treasure what matters least [Matt. 13:22]
  2. They have to eternal value and will not help on the day of judgment [Prov.11:4]
  3. They make it more difficult to trust Christ [Matt. 19:23-24]
  4. They increase our accountability [Luke 12:48]
  5. They become a temptation and a snare [1 Tim.6:9]
  6. They do not last [James 5:2]
  7. They do not satisfy [Eccl. 5:10]
  8. They will become your master [Matt. 6:24]
  9. They will steal your affections [Matt. 6:21]
  10. They can never be secured [Matt.6:19]

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