Breaking Point

I have to be honest with you, sometimes things just break. It’s true. It’s the fall season right now, and you’ll catch evidence of it everywhere. Leaves fall down, branches snap, and sometimes, things that look strong simply break.

A shelf that you thought was sturdy. A bone that you thought would withstand the fall. Snap. In a moment, it’s broken.

And sometimes, people just break. They may seem strong. They may seem unaffected. They may seem to have it all together, but given the right circumstances, snap. They break.

Maybe you’re at a breaking point in your life. You just can’t take much more. You know that at any moment in time, someone is gonna have to endure your outburst. Or maybe you’ve already failed in this. You’ve already watched yourself unravel.

How can you prevent getting to that point in your life where life simply crumbles in your face?

I think it’s important to identify some situations that lead to you and me just losing it. I’ve summarized a few:

1. You face a situation that demands too much.

2. You face a situation that goes too long.

3. You face a situation that you cannot fix.

4. You face a situation where you feel misunderstood.

That pretty much boils it down to the nitty gritty. You know exactly the kind of situation I’m describing. You’re living it right now, and you’ve had it. You’ve sought a way out. You think you’ve prayed about it, you’ve talked about it, you’ve tried to squeeze out from under it, but like a two ton elephant, it’s sitting on you, and you have no way out.

Worst of all, you feel like you have it worse than anyone else, and that no one around you really understands the magnitude of what you’re going through. You’re getting no help, no sympathy, and no let up.

You’re about to break.

What do you do when you’re at that point?

There’s no better place to look than the example of Jesus Christ at the crucifixion. I’d say that if anyone had the right to break, it should have been Jesus. Most of us would have understood it. Most of us would have sympathized. Most of us would have excused it.

But Jesus held firm. Far from breaking, he became our sympathizer. He became our example. He became our Savior. How did He do it?

Here are a few tips I’ve gleaned.

1. Get healthy early. The branch that breaks easiest is the one that is driest, oldest, deadest. Jesus got healthy very early in his life by spending time alone with God. He was busy. His plate was full, yet He still found time to go apart and be with God. He did it for survival, and not by any means to fill a requirement or get a check mark on his grade book. What are you doing to get healthy?

2. Keep perspective. Identify the real source of stress you are facing. Jesus never lost focus of who his attacker was. He kept his eyes on the main purpose of his life. He came to die. When the pressure was greatest, He rose the highest. He came to die. His attackers were not the handful of folks taunting him at his crucifixion. His main attacker was Satan himself, and Jesus’ eyes remained on the cross – unwavering, unshaken. Do you need a perspective check? Do you know your purpose in life? Stop looking at those around you to meet your needs and answer your questions. Look up. The answer may just be in heaven.

3. Keep your mouth shut. I’m preaching to myself here. Just do yourself a favor, and shut up. Jesus could have yelled, defended himself, argued, and won. But he didn’t. When accused, he gave no answer. Stop trying to be right all the time. Learn from the Savior. Live for God’s purpose and let God do the talking in due season.

4. Look to God – not people. People don’t have the answers. Looking to them for the answers will only create frustration and added stress. The result will be greater anger on your part. I love how Jesus never looked around to His disciples for understanding. Of course, they weren’t even around by that point. But his eyes were resting on his God. The result, our freedom from sin today.

5. Trust the perfect judge. Do you need a gentle reminder of this today? God sees what you’re going through. He knows your pain. He will judge in time. The situation will not last forever, and you will be vindicated. Just because you feel misunderstood doesn’t excuse sinful behavior. And just because you feel unheard doesn’t mean you are unheard.

6. Confess sin. The truth is that if you’re like me, you’ve already failed. Badly. Confess your sinful response to God and others, and change. It is after all, Christ’s victory at the crucifixion that grants us this grace. This grace wasn’t cheap by any means. Don’t abuse it.

Here’s a final word. Getting to a breaking point is bad. But brokenness is godly. Move from breaking to brokenness. It makes all the difference in the world.

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