Have you been praying for God to help you make BIG changes in your life, but you’re struggling to believe that He wants to?
Many of us are in dire need of a breakthrough, whether it’s overcoming an addiction, getting past the shame and guilt from our past, or repairing a troubled relationship. Sometimes, it seems like no matter how hard we try or pray, we just can’t seem to get victory in our lives. Sound familiar?
So how does breakthrough happen?
Breakthrough isn’t something we wait around hoping God will do some day, some time. Even though God has already promised this for our lives, it is something we initiate.
First, we must understand that breakthrough is something God can and wants to do.
Whether He does this in families, small groups, churches, and even in whole cities and nations, God’s deliverance comes by having a clear, strong vision of His goodness and mercy.
Jesus is here with unlimited power and He wants to unleash it into our impossible situations. And He wants to give us breakthrough because it’s always His desire to do good to us, and everyone around us.
Ever wonder where the “good” in this life comes from anyway? Most of us look to the world system for good things. We spend our energy, our time, our thoughts and our money on the stuff in this world that won’t truly satisfy.
But only Jesus is our true source of gladness, satisfaction, great relationships and prosperity. And only He is good (Psalm 23). After all, it’s God’s kindness that leads us to repentance, not guilt or condemnation (Romans 2:4).
So, whatever the breakthrough we long to see happen in our lives or in our families, it will come not when we’re down on ourselves, but when we begin to grasp the truth that God cares about us and those around us.
The God of the universe wants us to believe that He’s so good and powerful that He would use ordinary people like us to receive His extraordinary power in our impossible situations and then pass it on. It’s never just about us!
Second, to receive God’s breakthrough, we need to “make room” in our hearts and relationships.
The biggest breakthrough in all of the Old Testament is in Isaiah 54. Here’s what the prophet Isaiah says to Israel during a time when they didn’t have much hope and they were in captivity:
“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities. ( Isaiah 54:2-3)
God was preparing the Israelites for their breakthrough by telling them to “enlarge their tent” – or make room – for God’s blessings that were promised.
In the same way, we also need to “make room” for the huge blessing that is coming when we ask God for a breakthrough.
In the first book of the New Testament, James wrote to a group of Christians who were being persecuted and kicked out of their homes. They needed God’s deliverance like never before.
Here’s what he instructed them to do:
God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. (James 4:7-10)
Part of what it means to “make room” is realizing the idols in our life and getting rid of them. We do this by resisting the devil and humbly submitting to God -- whatever we’re dealing with – our addictions, our pain, our status, our time, our jobs, etc. It’s about saying to God, “I’ll do life your way.”
And as we turn toward God and submit ourselves to Him, we also identify the activities, thoughts, and motives that we know are wrong and choose to stop them. This is true repentance – to turn from our sin – and humbly turn toward God. And when we do, He promises to lift us up and turn things around.
Will breakthrough happen overnight? No! It will require courage! But I want to encourage you to take heart because God’s desire and promise is to give us His supernatural power and blessing when we turn to Him and trust Him for our strength.
