You're Stronger Than You Know

Praise the Lord, Chosen Women!

(Romans 5:3-5) Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.

My profession seems to require endless continuing education seminars and trainings. Occasionally they are really good; even God inspired. Such was the case last Friday.

As I listened to an awesome speaker share a presentation on the impact of trauma on women and girls my thoughts went directly to ministry. There were so many significant things that were shared; and I received so much revelation from the Lord. I'll share just one part with you.

As she closed the presenter shared an anecdote about how an individual could fracture a bone as a child. Though the bone may be reset and even heal; future x-rays even many years later will still reveal the point of the break. Doctors looking at the x-ray even years later can say, "Oh, I see you broke this bone some time ago." The broken place does not go away. But one thing is true -- the bone is now strongest at the point of that break. The bone grew thicker and stronger at that broken place to fortify it. Did you know that your brokenness came to make you stronger?

I heard a dear friend talk about being dropped. Sometime even as saints of the Most High God we experience things in which we feel that we have been dropped -- even by God. I pondered this thing for quite a while because I realized that at times I had felt the same way. One day as I was driving in my car thinking about it the Lord declared to me, "I have never dropped anyone!" He spoke it so definitively to me that I had to pull my car over!

He said, "When you drop something it means you have lost control of it. You have lost your ability to hold and handle it. It has come out of your grasp. Or perhaps you are startled by something that causes you to lose hold of the thing that you are handling." I felt overwhelmed by the weight of God's Word to me that day. He wanted me to clearly understand.

He said, "I never lose control! I never lose ability! I have never dropped anything that belongs to Me -- and I am never startled! Nothing catches me by surprise!" Then He said, "I don't drop you; but I do BREAK you!"

He then gave me a vision of clay, a wheel and the hand of a Potter. I saw the Potter shaping the clay and forming it into a vessel. As He applied pressure something broke through the surface of the vessel. I saw Him draw the vessel in close. From my vantage point in the vision I only saw the hand -- so I assume He brought it in for a closer look. Then He moved it back out -- while still holding it in His hand -- AND BROKE IT!

I realized in the vision that it was God applying the pressure! I saw His pressure bring something that had been unseen to the surface. I realize He is going to continue this process of molding and breaking until we are made into what He ordained us to be. What He demonstrated to me is that each time He re-forms us we are better -- and we are stronger. Is there any real difference between being dropped or broken? It can certainly FEEL the same. But there is most definitely a difference. God still has us firmly in His grasp -- and He knows when to let up on the pressure. He is not going to let it be beyond our ability to bear.

Please, don't allow your brokenness to make you stop moving forward. That friend who spoke of being dropped? She is doing just fine. God ministered to her and she is moving forward. But through that experience He wanted me to gain a greater revelation of His breaking role in my life -- in our lives. We cannot allow the pain of brokenness to make us give up. Sister, don't allow past pain to make you afraid to step out again. You CAN love again. You CAN preach again. You CAN launch another business. Yes they rejected you before -- but so what? It is okay to give yourself again even after the hurts of the past. There is so little time left; Jesus is so soon to come back! You can't wait on the sidelines of life anymore nursing your old broken place. Let God heal it!

Don't worry about the past mistakes. This time you are wiser. I know it broke you down last time, but this time you are stronger. You are better. Your discernment is keener. Don't be afraid of stumbling again -- you will be sober and not driven by anything that is not God focused. The brokenness has brought you to a point that you don't NEED the thing. Now God can trust you with it because it won't drive you or distract you from Him! Know why? Your brokenness has made you stronger than you know!

In Service for the Master,

Evangelist Lisa Y. Mitchell