Brokenness is a tool that God uses to put us in a position to make us realize that we can do nothing without Him.  The state of brokenness forces us to surrender to God everything that we thought we had total control of.  Everyone will go through painful experiences in their life.  The Bible tells us that in this life we would have trouble, but some of us will be put in a position where we are stripped of everything most of all our jealousy and our pride, and realize that somewhere, somehow we got all mixed up and confused about what is important in life.  We will feel lost and alone and finally do the one thing that will get God’s attention.  We will cry out to our heavenly Father because only He can take our mess and turn it all around for our good.

Humility is the key that unlocks the prison of despair and places us in a position to be healed.  Although brokenness has a purpose, God does not want us to remain there.  Satan’s goal is to steal, kill and destroy but the answer to getting back what Satan has stolen from us is found in our relationship with Jesus Christ.  Once we let go and let God we acquire the wisdom we need to push forward and get the victory.  Being broken is so valuable and if you were to ask any Believer who is successful today, they all have a story of brokenness behind them, and without going through everything they had to go through, they would not have reached their pennicle of success they enjoy today.

You are the sum total of the good and the bad experiences of your life.  Your heart must be strong enough to allow the broken pieces to co-exist with the wonderful memories you hold dear.  Do not get stuck on the past because there are some things that need to be left behind, but the lessons learned through brokenness are to be used to help you avoid making the same mistakes you did in the past.  God also wants you to pass on to others your wisdom so that they will be warned of the consequences of certain actions and attitudes not becoming a child of God.

Keep your eyes upon Jesus and don’t get angry at the trials and tribulations that come your way.  God is faithful and He has a plan for you but the only way out is to go through brokenness.  You will come out a much better person that will be fit for the master’s use.  God is the potter and you are the clay.  He alone knows how long you must stay in the fire to be refined so that you come out as pure gold.

Everyone wants one thing in life and that is to be happy.  Happiness cannot be bought; it is not found in material things nor can it be found in another person.  It’s possible to have weath yet elude happiness.  It’s also possible to lack wealth yet be extremely happy.  Why?  The source of happiness is having a personal, intmate relationship with God, and if you have found this treasure, you will know that it doesn’t matter what  emotional, marital, financial or physical state you are in, happiness is always there.  Many people make the mistake of looking for happiness in all the wrong places but eventually discover that it is not found in a person, place or thing because all of those things are temporal and are constantly changing.  God has promised to never leave nor forsake those who do have a relationship with Him and He will never change – never!

Following are some practical things you can do if you have already established the foundation of knowing Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.  Put them into practice and you will have the secret that many people have not yet discovered.

1) Live life one day at  time

2) Count your blessings and not your problems

3) Be a giver and not a taker

4) Be anxious for nothing

5) Learn to laugh and learn to cry

God wants His children, who are called by His name, to seek Him and His kingdom first and then He has promised to add everything that we need to our lives.  Being anxious will do you more harm than good – both emotionally and physically.  Tomorrow is not promised to anyone and worrying will not change your situation.  Either you trust God or you don’t; so worry or trust – don’t do both.

Happiness is putting a smile on someone else’s face.  If we are focused on ourselves, we will never experience the joy of making another person happy.  The Bible tells us that it is better to give than to receive.  You will never be able to out give God, so when you give, He will give it back to you in a larger measure than you used.  Givers are under an open Heaven and not only will the receiver be blessed but the giver will cause God to notice them and reward them because giving is part of God’s heart.  He loved mankind so much that He gave His only begotten Son so that we might have eternal life.  There is no greater display of love than that.

Happiness is not found under a mask.  Many people put on their daily masks and try to make others think that they are happy.  Do not be afraid to reach other to your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ if you need help and allow them to help you.  God has put people in our lives that we can trust and depend on.  They will cry with us, pray with us and rejoice with us.  Those kinds of relationships are most dear and if you do not have such friends, ask your heavenly Father to bring them into your life and you will see what a difference it makes when two walk together as one.

Are you happy?  If your answer is no, begin with reaching out to God and let him come into your heart and heal you and then He will bless you with His joy, His peace and His happiness.

Thank you God for today.

This is the beginning of a new day.  I can waste it or use it for good.

What I do today is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.

When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever – leaving in its place something I traded in its place for it.

I want it to be gain – not loss; good not evil; success not failure so that I do not regret the price I paid for it.

Life doesn’t have a remote control.  If you want something to change in your life, you must do it.  Don’t settle; don’t compromise; don’t let life pass you by while you sit on the sidelines watching others passionately engaged in what brings them joy.  Tomorrow is not promised to any one.  Make the best of today.  Offer no excuses – just make up your mind to do that one thing you have been thinking about for so long but have yet to act upon it.  The Bible tells us to acknowledge Him in all our ways and He will direct our paths. (Proverbs 3:6).  This is a day that the Lord has made, make it count!

I can say with confidence that the Lord is on your side!  God’s Word repeatedly tells us ‘to fear not.’  It doesn’t matter what the nature of the battle you are fighting, you are not fighting alone because God has promised to never leave nor forsake you.  Your battles are His battles and if He is with you, you will always win for if God be with you, who can be against you? If you are living life depending on your own strength, chances are you will have a limited amount of success.  Your education, personality and talents might serve you well in some things and only with some people.  But Believers have an weapon that few are taking advantage of.  God’s arm is not too short that He cannot save.  You owe it to yourself to live your life knowing that with God all things are possible.

In the wrestling arena there is a matched called ‘tag team wrestling.’  In it, two men are fighting against two opponents but there can be only one person from each team in the ring at one time.  When one fighter gets tired or is getting beaten all he has to do is tag his partner and his partner can step in and he can leave the ring.  Believers have the Lord Jesus Christ as their tag team partner.  When they have done all they can do and it isn’t enough, all they have to do is  call on the Lord.  He will come running with the victory in His hand because at the name of Jesus every knee must bow!

The Lord is your helper.  He will come running when you call upon His name.  Do not allow yourself to be defeated.  The enemy of your soul wants you to believe that you are in this world all alone but nothing could be further from the truth.  The Word of God tells us how much we are loved and that we have a friend that sticks closer than a brother.  When you are weary, call upon Jesus and He will be there right when you need Him.  If you need encouragement, sit down and spend time reading God’s Word and let your faith grow in the knowledge that God is on your side.

Many of you know what it is like to have a “mid-night hour” experience. A mid-night hour experience is the time when things are the darkest.  It is the time when you need to be rescued because you are virtually blinded by your situation. You know it is the time when you need a miracle, because only a miracle can bring you the urgent relief you so desperately need. When everything is falling apart; when your plans don’t seem to be working, the good news is God has a plan to miraculously rescue you.

The Apostle Peter went through a mid-night experience.  King Herod had him arrested and had him chained to a guard on his left and a guard on his right.  His hands and feet were also chained.  Peter was going to be executed the next morning but that was not the will of God.  The church was praying for him and those prayers prevailed.  God sent an angel down and released Peter from his chains without waking up the guards.  The angel showed him the way out and set him on his way.  This all happened so quickly that Peter thought he was dreaming. When Peter appeared at the door of those praying for him, they were shocked and didn’t believe at first that Peter was actually in their midst.  It took a miracle to rescue Peter and a miracle is what he received.

You might be in a situation that only God can get you out of.  It doesn’t matter how difficult it looks; just know that God can do anything and everything.  There isn’t a problem that God can’t solve.  God can step in and release the chains that bind you.  The Bible says that the effectual, fervent prayers of the righteous avails much. (James 5:16). Although you may be going through the most humbling experience of your life, although you may feel as if God has forgotten you, or that your friends have forsaken you, God will provide a way of escape for you.  Many saints have experienced  a miracle at mid-night.  If you need one, humble yourself and pray and God will show Himself to you.  He will break the chains that bind you and He will do it in such a way that even you will think that you are dreaming.