"But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to dispair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of jesus, so that the life of jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death of Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you."
Tonight I've been challenged with the idea of brokenness. As anyone else, in my life, i've experienced good times and bad. I've had quite a few times of complete dispair where I wasn't sure how I was going to make it. This is one way to define brokenness. Broken by circumstance. I let the circumstances and issues of life take hold of me and affect me to the point of completely breaking me down. I don't rely on Christ enough to keep me together and keep me strong during those times. I pray that I can always give my circumstances to God and trust him to take care of them and me. He won't give me anything that I can't handle. Then there are the good times, when I feel completely whole and like nothing could bring me down. But I've found that it's during these times when I am furthest from God. I tend to forget that I need him and that He is the reason for everything good in my life. My prayer for this is that I always realize my need for Him and the blessings He has given me. I don't want to take any credit for what He has done in my life and take away the light from Him. The point that I want to strive for on a daily basis is brokenness for Christ. It's the point of being broken in the sense that without Christ, I am not whole. I am broken without him holding me together. BUT, I don't want to be whole enough that I forget my need for Him. I want to let His light shine through my cracks and holes. He completes me. I am nothing without Him. He is my strength, my pillar, everything that holds me together. And I want everyone around me to be able to recognize that He is just that. I want them to look at me and see nothing but Christ's light shining through.
2 Corinthians 4:18 "So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day."
