Tired of Hearing about "Breakthrough"

Why is it always 'breakthrough'?

It seems like every prophetic word that is published since the New Year is about breakthrough.

'This is your year…' 'Your breakthrough is near…' etc.

I have to confess, after a while—I stopped reading them.

I've subscribed or followed all these time-tested servants for good reason. I have watched their messages and their lives. These are not flakes.

But this year, on and on popped up the 'breakthrough' messages. 

Frankly, I got sick of it.

 I've had to take a good look at my jaded heart.

How did this happen?

I have to trace back the steps to find where I left my soft heart.

I'm still tracing those steps, so I'm writing this 'in process'.

Part of the problem is: I know too much. Yep. That's it. My Mom would call it 'being too smart for my own good.' (Wow. I haven't thought of that indictment in a while.)

Exactly how do you get too SMART for your own GOOD?

Isn't more 'smart' supposed to lead to more 'good'?

For me, the steps have brought me to remember and consider several things:

• Knowing something doesn't equal possessing it.
• Knowing something doesn't mean you have the wisdom to take it deeper—further into action.
• Knowing something can lead to just being satisfied with 'knowing'.
• Knowing something isn't good enough.
• Knowing is just knowing. It is a good start, but only the start.

Mom knew:  I knew plenty—but it didn't change my life. For my own good.

You can sit down on your 'knower' and not reach your own 'good'.

I know this—no one wants to listen to a knower. We want to hear from those who know, understand, act and can speak from depth. Inside of me, there are both mountains and valleys. People talk about the courage of climbing a mountain—but I want to tell you that it takes a WHOLE lot of courage to go down in your valleys and have a good look at what you have only 'known'. Mannnnn, I have a lot of shallow places.

I don't want to be “...always learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth...” 2 Timothy 3: 7

These backwards steps to retrace where I left the softness of my heart… led me to a pond of disappointment and sadness in my life. I have grief—real grief—that has clogged the spring that once fed life into that pond.

The lingering of these things, I can see, gave place to eventually being jaded.

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick but desire realized is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13: 12

A tree of life. Softness is there. Relationship is there. Renewed hope to hope again...is there.

So, when was that last time a desire realized was a tree of life for me? I won't list those things here, but I had to visit those beautiful places. Give thanks. I needed to remember when I have hoped in the past and then experienced the fruit of hope. 

Sit for a while under all those trees of life and reflect.

Softness.

There was a young prophet who dropped a borrowed axe-head in a river. Elisha asked him, “Where did it fall?” They went back to the place where it fell. Elisha threw a stick in the water and the miracle of the axe-head floating is recorded. (2 Kings 6)

I've dropped some things. I have to go back to those places.

“Lift it out,” /Elisha said/ and the man reached out his hand and took it.” v 7

Have you ever dropped something that you wouldn't recover again?--much less expect it to float??

The axe-head was borrowed. A trusted friend knew how to help him get it back. Oh, my. I've been too isolated. I know better than to do that. Isolation is not for my own good. A wise, close friend is a gift.

Hope is given to us. It is on loan… for us to mix it with faith and see something to completion. Miraculously. Through prayer. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen.” Heb 11: 1

A stick has been thrown in my water. And borrowed hope that was trusted to me… is floating now where I can see it and retrieve it. With joy. I'm reaching out my hand...to take it.

I'm brushing the dust off of the hopes one-by-one. I'm asking for the breath of God to visit those things; those places. As I pray. As I sing. As I hope and wait. I am willing to be comforted. Relief is here.

So, go ahead, all you who shout 'Breakthrough'! I'll read it and add my 'yes'. I will read them and believe again. I'll allow myself to shake off deferred hope and water the tree of life with song.

My heart is getting softer and softer.

  Well, whatta ya know……...