I prayed about what to blog about this week and kept hearing the words “Breaking Point.” I believe that God is trying to tell us to hold on despite feeling like we have reached a breaking point. Perhaps God wants us to see how He uses breaking points so that we learn not to become fearful or stressed. I pray that the words in this blog post are a blessing and that God will use my fingers to type the message He wants us to hear.
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Reaching a breaking point sounds like a negative state of affairs, as these words cause us to think of being at the end of our rope with our backs against the wall or distraught. Even though the words paint the picture of hopelessness, our faith as Christians reminds us that no matter what situations we face, our God is in control, and He’s a good God.
Our Heavenly Father loves us and wants to protect, provide, and prepare the way for all of his children. When God created us before He formed us in our mother’s belly, He planned for us just as He did for Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:5). No matter what we see happening in this world; we must remember who our God is and take comfort in his ability to get us to our destiny.
I am convinced that we may not ever understand all of the reasons why things happen on Earth. The Bible warns us that God’s thoughts and ways are above ours (Isaiah 55:8-9). God knows everything and can work everything together in ways that only make my head spin thinking about it all.
If we use examples in the Bible, we can see that sometimes “breaking point” situations help get us right where God wants us. We may get “good and tired” or “reach our wit’s end” before we seek God. Unfortunately, sometimes change won’t come from a gentle “nudge” but instead requires the cumulative effect of many situations or sustained pressures.
Reaching A Breaking Point – A Cumulative Effect
The Bible is full of stories about breaking points. Do you remember all the plagues God sent to the Egyptians as He told Moses to tell Pharoah to let the Israelites go free? The Book of Exodus explains that there were ten plagues. The plagues that afflicted the Egyptians were water turning to blood, frogs, lice, flies, livestock killed, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and death of the firstborn.
Each time a plague came, Pharoah refused to let the people go until the last one when his firstborn son died. That was Pharaoh’s breaking point. Pharoah should have allowed the Israelites to go before then, but perhaps it took the cumulative effect of each plague to bring about the desired end. Ultimately, Pharoah’s breaking point offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the children of Israel to walk out of captivity.
Reaching A Breaking Point – Sustained Pressure
Another story in the Bible used to highlight the “breaking point” occurs in 1 Samuel. In this story, Hannah is one of Elkanah’s two wives. The Bible tells us that the other wife, Penninah, had children, and she provoked Hannah because she had no children. Every year, the family made a trip to worship and sacrifice. Hannah was so upset during this specific trip that she could not eat. The Bible clarifies that this was a yearly trip, so we can assume that Hannah reached a place where she was ready to see change on this visit.
As the story continues, Hannah goes to the temple to pray. She prayed a “pour it all out” sort of prayer. I can picture that Hannah probably didn’t care what her sobbing and sniffling looked like to anyone. Hannah just needed to have a moment with God. The Bible states that Hannah was so upset that she wept bitterly. Hannah prayed so hard that the Prophet, who saw her praying, thought she was drunk.
As she prayed, she vowed a vow. She asked God for a son and promised that if He blessed her with a son, she would return the child to God.
And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”
1 Samuel 1: 11 ESV
Hannah asked God for a son in this prayer and vowed to raise him for the Lord. As I look at the story, I believe that as Hannah reached a breaking point, she prayed and was able to bring her desires in line with God’s will. Perhaps at one time, she wanted lots of children. Maybe she even wanted to have a child to hush Penninah, but in prayer, she found a way to honor God with her request.
Many of us can identify with wanting God to bless us and not wanting to be uncomfortable. No one wants to be the exception. If everyone else has children, we also want them. If everyone is married, we think we want the same. God is not as interested in helping us keep up with everyone else. God wants us to impact the Kingdom for His glory. Hannah was ready for a blessing because she was willing to pray to God for what she wanted by aligning her request and desire to have a son with a Kingdom purpose.
Reaching a Breaking Point In Everyday Life
In our everyday lives, we may go through many difficulties. For example, when we want to build a business, we may find ourselves struggling and working overtime, but it may seem that nothing is going right. Perhaps we go back to school, and there is one class that seems too complicated and makes us want to quit. Another example can be when raising a challenging child or going through a tough time in a marriage. These situations can feel overwhelming, but we need to see them as an opportunity to remember to keep God in our plans.
No matter what we go through, our response is always to pray first. Most of us pray to God only after we feel a cumulative effect of difficulties or sustained pressures. Sometimes, the first or second “plague” doesn’t fully get our attention, or the first injustice goes unnoticed.
We need to be quick to pray, and we should pray often. The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing and to pray about everything. Besides praying about what we want, we need to consider, like Hannah, how what we desire could benefit God’s Kingdom. Imagine what would happen if we prayed to God and vowed to use the new business or completed degree for God’s glory to help our community meaningfully. What if we promised God we would share our testimony and help someone else? Is it possible that we can start lining up our dreams and hopes with a Kingdom purpose? Of course, we need to mean and keep our promises.
Imagine how different things could be if we addressed concerns before reaching our breaking point. We should have consistent prayer lives and not allow situations to compound. We should speak to God about every plague and injustice, but we should also talk to Him about every victory, giving God glory and honor.
A Prayer When We Have Reached a Breaking Point
When reaching a breaking point, it affects our health and well-being. It is common to stop eating right and isolate ourselves. In those moments, it is best to spend alone time in prayer to God. We must be careful not to be alone with negative thoughts as this can let the enemy step in, but instead, we should get quiet in the presence of God. We serve a mighty God, and no problem is too difficult for Him. Let’s agree with God’s will for our lives and look for ways to benefit God’s Kingdom with our talents, gifts, and dreams as we pray.
