This past Sunday I shared a message about the process God uses to work in our lives. It is a concept that I borrowed from Pastor Steven Furtick, but don’t worry – he borrowed it from T.D. Jakes and I’m sure someone will borrow it from me. That is the beauty of God’s word; it’s alive! And when it goes out it continues to inspire and breathe life into all who hear it.

The process I shared last Sunday comes from the example of how Jesus handles bread. That may sound like a funny place to start, but what if we can learn something about how Jesus handles each and every one of our lives from the way He handles bread. In Luke 24:30 that is says, “It was as He reclined at the table with them that He took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.” The words I want to emphasize to you are: took, blessed, broke, and gave. This is the process God uses.

As we pointed out on Sunday, it is the process God used in the lives of men like Abraham, Isaac, Moses, Joseph, and even Jesus. Using Jesus as the supreme example, we see how God took him from the womb of the virgin Mary, blessed him with signs and miracles, broke him on a hill called Calvary, and gave him to be the Savior of the world. This is the process God uses and he uses it in my life and yours.

Let me briefly define those stages for you.

1. The Taking Stage. What I also call the “calling stage.” It is where you sense God is calling you in a new direction in your life; He’s taking you into new territory. It could be a new job/vocation, a new relationship or away from a damaging one, or it could be to a new ministry or involvement in a faith community such as this one.
2. The Blessing Stage. In this stage His divine favor rests upon us and He begins to open doors that seemed closed for so long, you are receiving so many more good things than you deserve, God’s goodness just seems to be upon everything you do.
3. The Breaking Stage. It is in the breaking stage that God purges from us all of our self-sufficiencies. It is in the breaking stage that we are forced to lay down our pride and arrogance, and realize that we are nothing without God. It is in the breaking stage that God makes us holy and makes us more like his Son Jesus.
4. The Giving Stage. God breaks bread so that He can give it. It was A.W. Tozer who said, “It is doubtful that God can use a man greatly, until He has hurt him first deeply.” God breaks us to make us useful.

As you reflect upon these things this week, I want to encourage you to think once again about what stage you find yourself in. Spend some time praying and asking God to reveal where He has you. Once that becomes evident to you, surrender your life completely to Him and ask Him to fulfill his purpose in you.

You can listen to this message in it’s entirety by clicking here.

- Pastor Brandin