“So David and his troops went up to Baal-Perazim and defeated the Philistines there. ‘God did it!’ David exclaimed, ‘He used me to burst through my enemies like a raging flood!’ So they named that place Baal-Perazim (which means “the Lord who bursts through”).” 1 Chronicles 14:11 NLT


Breakthrough is awesome when breakthrough comes. However, the time between beginning to pray for it and when it happens is not for the faint of heart. What happens when it takes months or years? What happens when I don't see it at all? How long do I pray? Do I ever just give up? Do I finally say, "maybe it's just God's will that this doesn't happen?” Many times God wants to move, but I am at the mercy of my own limited time, other people's will, a lack of patience, my own will that gives up, or letting my own desire to reach the breakthrough move me into a place where I move without the Lord's blessing. All of these examples are scattered throughout scripture. Just a few examples- the Children of Israel wandering in the desert for 40 years, the waiting for a Messiah that was prophesied about in the Old Testament as early as Genesis 3:15 when God was addressing Satan, Paul's appeal to God to remove the thorn from his flesh (where the Lord just said "My grace is sufficient"), and how about when Christ was crucified and the disciples didn't know what they should do? They all returned back to the familiar things they did before they met Christ. Their breakthrough didn't really come until the day of Pentecost. One of the most glaring examples is Judas. In his impatience for Jesus to take the throne (which he thought was earthly), he gave Jesus up in hopes that His hand would be forced and He would take the throne. Talk about trying to move without the Lord's blessing. Look at how that turned out. Eternal death at his own hand. Breakthrough is a combination of knowing God's will, waiting, praying, believing, trusting, remaining faithful and a continual aligning of self to the will of God. Breakthrough isn't easy, but it is life altering. From beginning to end it’s a process that not only brings about the breakthrough but transforms faith. It becomes the testimony in our lives. It becomes the footing for the next breakthrough season.

“Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else; but God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for those of us who are united with Christ Jesus. God saved you by His grace when you believed. You can’t take credit for this. It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:1-10 NLT


How much of Jesus do you want? I want it all. The Lord and I have had this conversation many times. What motivates that discussion? Usually me getting in over my head or finding myself in a situation I feel threatened by or unable to handle. Just being honest. It seems, that for me at least, I am motivated in times that I realize I'm not making the grade. When I say that, I'm not referring to good works, but I am saying it in reference to how my life needs to look different than it used to. If I were given over to my old nature, life would look a lot different. Even now, I find myself with old tendencies that creep in. It's in those moments I must take an inventory and realize I still have some of me that needs to die so that Christ can be completely manifested in my life. If I am raised with Christ from death, something in me has had to die as well. I think our resurrection in Christ is an ongoing process. Salvation is the first step and only takes belief. The second, third, fourth, and every step beyond that takes place as I realize there are still areas in my life that are controlled by my flesh. I am still sinning when I choose to disobey God because of an incorrect attitude or denial to conform to His image. I believe this is why He is rich in mercy and love toward us. I am in the process of being refined as God brings life from death in all parts of my life. So, how much do I want? I want it all. This is why I continue the race. If I am to sit in Heavenly places with Christ through His death and resurrection, I want to be changed each time I see new mercies over any part of my life. He deserves it all and I deserve death. He paid the price and penalty for me to have the place He prepared for me. His life reveals what mine should look like if I am His heir. As an heir of Christ, I want to represent the name I have been given well. I always tell my children "Remember who you are." That means to represent the values of our family.

How much of Jesus do you want? Do you find yourself struggling with your old sinful nature? Are you willing to identify the areas you struggle in and surrender them to God?

"Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.” 1 Peter 5:8-9 NLT

I will not surrender. I may enter the battle without all the information I need. I may not know just how fully God has equipped me. I may not realize the power the Lord is wielding through me. I may never have to strike a blow to win the battle. What I do know is that my armor covers me as I move forward not backwards. When I retreat, I expose the areas of my life that are most vulnerable. I will enter the battle with my eyes looking forward. The Lord will guide my words and my steps. The enemy has no power stronger than the name of Jesus. My mind is made up. I will trust in Him and He will be my sword and shield. I pray the other warriors around me will share the same attitude and will pray for those who curse them. Lord, help me be the warrior You have called me to be.

“For all that is in the world–the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not from the Father but from the world.” 1 John 2:16
“So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.”
Matthew 10:31 NLT


I grew up without the best of everything. I always had what I needed and it was always more than sufficient. However, it didn't feel that way when I was being teased by the guys at school. At some point, I let that become my motivation. I was motivated to have things that would stop the teasing. At 12, I got my first job. I mowed yards all summer long. I would have my parents drop me off and I would work until I was finished and then go to the next yard. I remember how proud I was when I bought my first pair of NIKE shoes. That would show them. But, as luck would have it, they just found something else to tease me about. It didn't matter what I did, the appetite of the world around me was insatiable. Still, I aspired to do more, make more money, get a better car, and have more friends. By the time I was 16, I bought my brother better Christmas gifts than my parents bought him. I didn't want him to go through what I was going through. Over time, I had seen how hard my father worked just to keep us afloat. He worked 2 jobs, sometimes 3 to make ends meet. We went from an apartment to a 2-bedroom house and from there to a beautiful 3-bedroom home he built for us while mom went back to school to get her degree. His hard work paid off and we had more than we ever had. I learned a lot of things from dad about work ethic, but there was still a difference
between his ethic and mine. Our motivations were different. My motivation centered around me and his centered around family. Even when he was working multiple jobs, he included me. I learned a lot when I worked with him. I guess what I'm trying to say is, sometimes I still get caught in the trap of my stuff equating self-worth. I have forsaken some important things in order to attain more. God has blessed my hard work. I have everything I need and more, but at times, I focus more on the next goal than my next moment with the Lord. Father, help me seek You first. I have to leave all the stuff behind in the end anyway.

“You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!”
John 14:13-14 NLT


Lord, I need you more than anything. Let my focus be on You and Your will for my life. Grant me the ability to find You and Your will in the midst of my struggles. I am at Your mercy asking for You to restore what has been lost. Heal minds, heal hearts, heal relationships in Jesus’ name. Father, I ask You to fix faulty thinking, faulty perceptions, and any misunderstanding that allows the enemy to have a foothold. Be my rock and my refuge. Let me hide in the shelter of Your wings. Bring salvation to me through and by the power of Your Holy Spirit. In the name of Jesus, I ask for Your will to be done in my life and the lives of my children. Lord, help me put my house in order. Extend mercy and grace to the point that I cannot help but respond from it. I speak truth into the spiritual world so that You can give it life in the physical world. Thank you, Lord, for Your faithfulness.
Amen

Are you guilty of asking God for things that align with your will rather than His? Are you willing to pray for God to align your heart with His so that what you pray for is already His hearts desire for you?

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalms 139:23-24 NLT

Asking God to search my heart is scary. One, because I already know what's in my heart and two, because it makes me vulnerable. Asking God to search my heart is a posture of submission. He doesn't have to search my heart to know what is there. He created it and He knows what is in it better than I do. My faith can only grow when I am able to submit my will and my wants that are driven by my heart, to Him.

Lord I repent for choosing my way over yours. Show me how my heart fails you and begin to allow your grace and mercy to minister to places I have tried to hide from everyone including you.

Are you willing to ask God to search your heart or do you want to keep him from seeing it? If God searched for Adam and Eve in the Garden, I am certain He is still searching for us today. God already knew what had been done and still he chased after them? That story hasn't changed since the beginning, and He intensified the search for us when He sent Jesus to die for us.

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:1-2 NLT
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Transformation of the mind is something that I must desire. If I see no reason for changing my mind, why would I desire to do it. Even when I see the reasons for change, I must be willing to submit every thought to God and subject it to the scrutiny of His Holy Spirit and The Word (both scripture and Jesus). All of these must be in agreement. God, Holy Spirit, and Jesus are always in agreement and subject to one another. After all, we are searching for "His pleasing and perfect will". Once I know God's stance and heart I must bend my will and thought process to match His. This is not magic. This is a choice. The same way I make a choice to sin is the same way I make a choice to do right. The more right choices I make, the more God is able to show me the outcomes of my right decisions. There are also things I experience that come from outside sources, things that have shaped my responses and attitudes. Some of those responses and
attitudes are wrong. How do I change my learned behaviors? Again I choose. I choose to see what God says about me and who I am. I look at my past and see His faithfulness. Even through the worst of times, I am still loved and made whole in who God, Holy Spirit, and Jesus says that I am. If I am made to feel less than, the scripture says "I am more than a conqueror". For every negative the enemy would slam me with, God says something positive. If the enemy is a liar and God is truth, which voice should I listen to? My situation often clouds my thinking. The situation magnifies the worst of what I think and doesn't allow me to see the problem, and many times people, with clarity. My vision and thoughts are skewed because of past issues.
Lord, let me believe your truth today. Remind me who I am and what I mean to you. Change the way I think about myself and any situation I find myself in that would say different. Don't let my perception of a situation override my ability to respond in ways that you require. Your ways are higher than mine. Help me find them.

Have you allowed the Lord to shape your thoughts? When He has made it a point to clarify where you need to stand, do you bend your will to His or do you still struggle to find peace in your response to what He is asking of you?

“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:16-21


I strive! I strive to control my emotions, my actions, my tongue, and my thoughts. My heart lies to me and wants to react in ways contrary to my beliefs. My mind struggles to control my heart motives. Somewhere in between is a spirit that tries to merge the two and respond from a place only Jesus can influence. It's a constant struggle. I pray I am characterized by having a heart and mind that are woven into the Spirit of the Lord residing in me. Will I always get it right? Nope. Will I always get it wrong? Nope. Will I always strive to be subject to the Spirit that lives in me? I certainly hope so. If I am controlled by my mind, I am compelled to protect myself from anything that might harm me. If I am controlled by my heart, I miss the connection I need to be empathetic or sensitive to other’s needs. I can think my way through most things and find a way to benefit myself. What I need is the real me. The combination of mind, heart and Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control....” Galatians 5:22-23
These are not characteristics we get to pick and choose to use as needed. They are evidence of life in Christ. They are not spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit hands out. They are the reflection of Christ within us and they are not optional. Being in Christ goes much deeper than being a good person. I've known several good people that aren't Christians and I know "Christians" that aren't good people. My desire is to find myself transformed into the image of Christ and to manifest the characteristics of His life. I'm a work in progress.

Do you find yourself struggling between what your flesh and emotions are demanding from you as you try to submit and conform yourself and your actions to the image of our Creator? Have you pursued acting in the Fruits of the Spirit or assumed that God created you the way you are and you don't have to try to act in ways that show He is working in you and helping you submit your will to His? Our purpose is to strive to be like Jesus. That means "Nevertheless, thy will, not mine.

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” Matthew 6:25-26 NKJV


Twenty-eight years ago, I had a struggle with a choice that would impact my future in a significant way. I was newly married and had been at my job for a few years. I had a dream one night that I was a horse (crazy right?!). I had a bridle in my mouth and whichever way it was tugged, I headed that direction. The one pulling the reigns was my employer. I had another business that I had been doing on the side for about 3 years and it was time to make a decision. Was I going to live in the relative comfort my job provided with opportunities to advance in the engineering department or was I going to step out on my own? I began worrying about how I was going to support my wife and future family if I decided to run my own business. There was so much security in my job which included a 401K program and health insurance. I struggled with worrying about how things would look in the future. I asked the Lord to speak to me through his Word.
Guess what He did? He used this very scripture. I woke one morning and did my devotional and it was this scripture. I felt I had been heard. That afternoon, I did another study on my lunch break and guess which scripture it was. This same one. It sounded better. That evening as I spent more time in another devotional, for the 3rd time, the same scripture was the focus. I prayed that evening and asked the Lord if He would just confirm it once more through a verbal witness (why?). I went to church Sunday morning and the pastor got up to preach. He said, "This is not what I am preaching on today, but the Lord impressed on my spirit that I should share this scripture." You got it, the same scripture! I headed to the alter after church to thank God for His faithfulness. The next morning I went in and turned in my resignation. I think I may have had less worry in my life then than I do now. Trusting was so much easier when I had little. Now that I have more family, more stuff and more responsibilities, my worry may have grown to be larger than my faith. I would love to say that even after God has proven Himself time and time again, I never worry, but that isn't the case. Worry is the tool the enemy uses to keep me in a place where I am stagnate and doubtful. I need to be reminded daily, that He is my portion. Nothing has access to me without it first passing through His hands whether it be a blessing or a trial. God's promise is that He will never leave me or forsake me in either of those scenarios.

Do you worry about tomorrow? What are you afraid of? Consider your whole life. How many yesterdays have you survived compared to the number of tomorrow's you worry about? Remembering how God has moved in your life in the worst times, all the yesterdays, allows you to see that tomorrow is still in His hands....as it always has been. 

WEAKNESS IS MY QUALIFICATION

“It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God.” 2 Corinthians 3:5 NLT

I look at my life and see God's blessings. He's given so much and has patience with me. Even now I look at the future with trepidation. Why? Because I feel that I am not enough. In reality I'm not and I know it. What matters is how I allow the Lord to move. He doesn't care for my strengths, but He thrives in my weaknesses. In my own strength, I'm bound to receive and take glory for my accomplishments. In my weakness, I can only give credit to a Heavenly Father who uses obedience over talent. I can spend all day telling the Lord why I can't do something when all He wants is for me to do is be a part of His plan. 2nd Corinthians 12:9-11 says, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Think about how you serve the Lord. Do you serve Him from your own strength, or do you allow Him to glorify Himself through your weakness? Please understand that He gives us gifts for use in His Kingdom purpose for our life, but even then, we can be guilty of taking that strength and weakening His purpose for it as we attempt to control an outcome through using that gift in our own strength. I am often guilty of trying to be the Holy Spirit rather than just being the vessel I am intended to be,