BROKEN AND POURED OUT

One of the greatest works God can ever do in our lives is to reveal His Person to us and how much we need to be changed into the image (icon) of His dear Son Jesus Christ. BUT, my friend there is a price you will pay for this revelation. To now the power of God you will pay a price. To know God's presence you will pay a greater cost and a different price. And to know God's Person it will cost you everything. This price begins when God can break and pour us out for His use. Please enjoy the article on this topic.

We think of being broken and poured out our minds often go to many scriptures that speak of God humbling and breaking us into a place where His Holy Spirit can work in our lives, truly making us fruitful in God. Now my friend if you serve Him long enough He will do this and more. One of my favorite scriptures in the Bible is, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. 25He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” (John 12:24-25) This is the work God desires to do in our lives, kill us so that He may be able to live through us. I find the longer I go with God the more I see my weaknesses and inabilities. It is strange, the longer I go with God the less I want to go for God. When God first started to use me in traveling the world to minister I was fearless, nothing stopped me, I would endure anything, but now within me I do not want to go. It is not my increasing age or health concerns, but is an ever increasing glimpse of my inability to go and do for God. I will be honest, it is frustrating to me. On one hand I do not want to go to the nations, yet on the other hand I know I must go. I am getting a better understanding and glimpse of the revelation of what Jesus told Peter, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” (John 21:18) Please notice in both (John 12:24 and 21:18) the double imperative; “Verily, verily” often translated “most assuredly” meaning there is no other way. This way is God’s everlasting way to do what God desires in our lives. The word “girdedst” here is translated strengthened, “When I was “young” or maybe immature, unskilled in God as a Christian I strengthened myself . . . but when I became “old” or mature, seasoned in God’s dealings and judgments I stretch forth my hands and another or others strengthened and carried me to places or poured me out in places, I did not want to go. The longer we walk with God the more He will take us to the hidden secret places of darkness in Him so that we can be strengthened in the inward man and know Him the more. These places are fearful to us and we do not want to meet Him there. “And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.” (Isaiah 45:3) My friend if we desire to be used by God we cannot be whole and well all of the time, living in victory every minute of the day as some teach, we must be broken and poured out so that we will be useful to God. Why even a wild horse is not useful until they broken for the saddle or harness. Like wild horses many Christians run around in the spiritual realm doing and saying whatsoever they want to do without any understanding and restraint causing problem after problem for themselves and others. In Proverbs we read, “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” (Proverbs 29:18) The word “vision” here is often translated from the Greek as limitations and restrictions, “Where there is no limitations or restrictions, the people perish . . .” If we really want to be used by God He must be able to break us and get us to live under the restrictions and limitations of His word for our lives. Sadly, I can now see the self-strength and self-ability I have moved in. Oh if I could only go back and redeem those times. Not that God did not use me and His will was not accomplished through me, He did and it was, but now I can see the difference and why some things happened the way they did. When we started Christliche Gemeinde Stuttgart, our church in Germany, I foolishly thought all of my America friends, all of my friends in my office and in my neighbors would join. How surprised I was when I asked them and they said no. I could not believe it. Even my Christian friends said no when I asked. They said, we are Pentecostal, Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, etc. we do not want to be associated with a Christian Church we are very happy with our denomination. I see now for our church to be a successful in God I had to be broken hearted from even my Christian friends and poured our of denominational teaching to be free to teach the word of God. I did not understand why I had to be separated from my American Christian friends, but if not there would never have been Eritrea and her Dad Kahsay. Eritrea was a very beautiful lady from the country of Eritrea and like most Africans living in Germany life was very difficult, jobs were rare, and harassment from the German government was almost a daily routine. And like most attractive African woman in Germany Eritrea turned to prostitution to survive. Her Dad Kahsay was heart-broken he felt not only did he lose his daughter when she turned to prostitution, but he also lost his country whom he named his daughter after. Well the Lord is good, Eritrea was invited to our church by a Ghanaian fellow, she gave her life to the Lord, her life began to change, she was serious about her conversion. You know when we are serious about what we say God will honor His word and our effort then change will happen in our lives. Her Dad saw the change in her life and came to church a few times to see what was going on. Finally, after three or four times at church he stood up and said, "I had to come to this church to see what power it was that changed my daughter Eritrea’s life and gave me my country back, now I too want this power" and he accepted Christ as his personal Savior. Today they are still a family serving God at Biblische Glaubens Gemeinde. Eritrea is now married and teaches Sunday School. Kahsay has made many contacts around the world for me to go and preach this glorious message of the Lord Jesus, this same message that transformed his life from darkness into the kingdom of light. Even to this day Karen and I have very few friends. But, I did not understand why must I be broken and poured out, why I could not have many friends to fellowship with, but now I see this walk with the Lord is a narrow way, not much room on the narrow way for many friends. The broad way has much room for many friends, the narrow way is full of separation, restrictions, and limitations, but it leads to the life of God. “Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14) Do you know why “few there be that find it?” Many would say it is a hard thing to understand like the Disciples said, “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?” (John 6:60), but this is not sure. Many do not find because only a few are looking. All that look will find. All that are “truly” looking for the truth of the Word of God will discover it. I hear Pastors say, “we like having fun at church.” Fun at church? Church is not to be a place where we are entertained and having fun. Going to Church is serious, it is a time when the Body of Christ comes together to hear the word of God from a broken vessel, praying one for the other, a time when we collectively as a local assembly of like believers stand before a holy God knowing He is God and we are not. It is not a time to run around networking with each other, but a time to listen to thus said the Lord. These Pastors who likes to have fun at church have little revelation of who God is and how He operates. Being broken is a work of God in our lives (if we allow Him) where He Himself will break us of bad habits, bad motives, and bad attitudes that are not sin, but will keep us from communion with Him. And there is a pouring out unto emptiness where God Himself will (if we allow Him) empty us or pour us out of the world, out of relationships that prevents us from growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord, out of religion, denominationalism, and church activities. Over the last 40 plus years I have been involved in so many church activities that if I did not really know I would swear they were of God, but in the end, I saw they were just man ordained rules and regulations that satisfy our religious flesh keeping us in bondage from really knowing God and His ways. We must never come under this yoke of man’s rules and regulations no matter how holy or spiritual they look. I have found the more spiritual and holy things look on the outside, the less of God is really moving in it. Often we see people laying prostrate on the alter or bowing down, but in reality it is look-see-pigeon (a Chinese expression), something for the people to do. One day I saw a lady (who everyone said was so spiritual) bowing down and raising her hands to heaven and bowing down again. This went on for about 30 minutes while the choir sang, she was a member of the choir. I thought this to be odd and inquired of God and felt in my spirit the Lord saying she has a Jezebel spirit in her. In time she was found out by causing division that split the church and even influenced some couples to separate and divorce. Remember, if it looks look a duck, acts like a duck, sounds like duck, and walks like a duck in God it may be a chicken. My friend let us be broken and poured out for the Master’s use. This process often is a painful process, but God must be able to work in our lives. The more we allow God to break us and pour us out from vessel unto vessel the more God will be able to use us. I hear many pray, God use me well the beginning of being used by God is this breaking and being poured out process in our lives. At the same measure God can break us at that same measure God will be able to use us no more no less. One Sunday I was speaking at a Pentecostal Freewill Baptist Church in North Carolina after the service an usher handed me a note, it read,” I by chance stopped at this church today and your words were the reason. Your few words stood for great purpose, your few words expressed explained years of shunned pain. I can accept now I am broken for a purpose. I will let the Lord use me for I am broken and I will not self-pity because I am broken, I am blessed. Thank you so much, God bless.” Our brokenness is seen not in our actions, but in our response and obedience to Him. Written by David Stahl.