[Edited notes Brokenness the Plan by Charles Stanley] ²⁵ He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶ If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor ( Jn 12:25–26).  Who will be the Lord of your life?  If you want his best, you must be willing to surrender all areas of your life completely and totally to him.  That's the only way God can give you his best.  Only then can you become all that God has called you to be.  Only then can he fulfill his plans for you. His plans are the best plans.   

Sometimes we need to be broken--die to self.  Brokenness is about God working in your life and mine.  He sends things into our lives so that we come to a place of surrender.  He wants those parts of your life that you have not surrendered to him.

When people reject Jesus, they are rebelling against him.  God uses tools to bring us to the end of ourselves.  We die to those things in our lives that have become abstractions.  He will remove idols, be they your job, alcohol, women, etc.  God is up to something better in your life and mine.  He'll turn up the heat if necessary.  He wants your total surrender.  

When the trial is over, you'll thank God that he did not listen to you and what you wanted.  You will thank him for being able to surrender what you had to surrender.  You'll never be sorry for surrendering your life to him. Separate yourself from anything or anybody for his plan.  When you look back, you'll think, how could I have been holding on to that? 

Pride says, I rule.  I reign.  Brokenness is about brining that self-life to it's end.  God wants death to the self life in us. That is pride.  When you allow the Sprit of God to rule and reign, you get the fruits of the spirit. 

Tell the Lord, whatever it takes; Lord, send it.  Give me the grace to bear it.  But God, don't quit on me. Then, you'll know how to love and be loved and you'll have joy in your heart.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴ And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit (Ga 5:22–25).

[Pt 2] What is God after?  He's after your old soul life.  The Spirit of God cannot rule in our life as long as self is there. Self life.  How does it express itself?  Self advancement--get ahead.  There's self-centeredness--the world revolves around me.  What do I want?  What pleases me?  What brings me pleasure? What satisfies me?  What do I like to indulge in?  No self-centered person can love anybody.  You can't love yourself and love Jesus. Self-dependency--I can handle it--depending on yourself, not on God.  Likewise, self righteousness.  Don't tell me I have to go to church; I'm a good person.  I like the way I live.  You don't need God's forgiveness or cleansing.  He lives and acts as if there is no God.  They compare themselves to the worst person they know.  Self righteousness is hypocrisy.  God hates it.  Self will.  I'm going to do what I want to do.  I'm in control.  God is after the self-life. 

Jesus is the center of the world.  Brokenness is about brining that to it's end--death to the self life. 

Tell the Lord you want his best.  He's good and loving.  He's got the best for you.  Tell him you want to be the person that he wants you to be and achieve the things in life that he's set for you.  Are you willing to get before him and say that? Then, say Lord show me this self that's in me--ruling my life, reigning over me, controlling me, coloring everything I see, clouding my mind to what I'm really like--the way I treat others, the way I treat you, Lord, the excuses I give you, the rationalization that I go through for not being obedient to you. God show me that.  It takes courage to look at yourself. 

Jesus is worthy of your whole life.  He died for you.  You'd be hell-bound had he not died for you.  Will you let him put to death the self life in you?  Then you get the fruits of the spirit.  He's after that part of you and me that doesn't fit who we are.  Sometimes it gets painful.  He wants us to look at our life.  He wants us to examine our life. He wants us to examine, lay down, walk away from, separate ourselves from--those things that he brings to our mind and heart to realize. We are dependant on him.  Sometimes it's loss, sometimes it's embarrassment, sometimes it's some experience in our life--we would never think that these things come into our lives--and yet, they do.  He's after some bit of self that he still sees.

He helps us walk holy, righteous and obediently before him.  Then, see what he has provided for you waiting.  You can expect a new view of God's purpose in your life. Lay down the junk.  You'll see what God's up to in your life.

You'll get a whole new freedom in your spirit.  Lay down all the stuff that doesn't belong there.  There's freedom and peace in that. You'll have contentment.  Allow the sprit of God to bring to death all that stuff. 

You'll have a new sense of power and authority in your life. You'll gain more confidence in your life about who you are but it's a decision you have to make.  What are you holding on to of the self life that you are willing to keep on holding on to knowing it will cost you God's best in this life and his best for all eternity.  Some position?  Some possession? Some relationship?  Some habit? What are you holding on to that you are willing to hold to even at the expense of God's loving best that he's provided for you?  It's not worth it.  Say, Father, here's my life.  Here I am Lord.  Above everything else in life have me--have all of me.