Being Broken In The Right Places

-When I resist being broken I miss all these wonderful things.

4. When I avoid those painful situations and isolate myself and my feelings, I’m telling God no more and I pass up opportunities for God to mold and shape me as he wishes.

C. 3rd reason I’m not being broken in the right places—I have misplaced priorities.

1. John Wesley’s advice to preachers: "You may be eloquent, you may have wisdom, you may be a good financier. Yes, you may have a great demand upon your ministry, but if you do not win souls you are a failure."

2. When asked why he had been so successful, Tom Landry responded to a crowd of more than two thousand students at Baylor University, "In 1958, I did something everyone who has been successful must do, I determined my priorities for my life—God, family, and then football."

3. If you give your child a quarter for the Sunday offering and later give him three dollars to go to the movies, you may be teaching him a set of values he will keep the rest of his life.

4. Among the classified ads in the Quay County Sun was this ad: "Farmer with 160 irrigated acres wants marriage-minded woman with tractor. When replying, please show picture of tractor."

-We may laugh at the farmer who ran this ad (he was concerned about his farm). a. If we’re not careful we’re just like that with God. It goes like this: -I want a life of comfort and ease and, God, if you come that’s fine.

-I want to make heaven where there is no more pain and suffering, no more tears and, God, if you’re there that’ll be fine.

-I want a loving spouse and happy healthy kids and a good-paying job with no stress and, God, if you’re there that’s great.

Question: Is our priority on what God can do for us or is it just to be with him in his presence. Do I love him or do I love what he can do for me.

Simply put: Is my priority about me and my ways or is it about him and his ways?

Conclusion: I talked about a couple of things that will hinder us in our breaking process.

Question before us today: How are we responding to this process? Am I turning more inward, sheltering myself from the pain or am I reaching out to others who have been hurt? Is it about me or about others? Am I getting more mean and cynical or kinder and more positive?

-One is being broken in the right place while the other is being broken in the wrong place.