December 5th, 2025

Figuring out your calling — asking God what His divine purpose is for your life — is hard enough. But answering the call? That’s another battle entirely. I’ve learned there is a cost to saying “yes” to God that few people talk about, and even fewer feel prepared for.

Being a Christian and having a real relationship with the Lord isn’t always easy. I’ve battled spiritual warfare, questioned God’s direction, and wondered if the path I’m on is truly where He wants me. I’ve had moments where I felt like everything was falling apart — again.

Just the other day, I read something that hit me hard:
“Everyone wants the oil, but few want the crushing.”

How true is that? Who desires to feel crushed or worn down? Certainly not me. But here’s the reality I’m learning: before God lifts us up, before He uses us to our greatest purpose, He often empties us out. In my own walk with Him, I’ve lived through the breaking season — and that season always comes before the birthing season. Before revival.

It’s natural to ask, Why would a good God “break” us?
For me, that answer always leads back to humility and pride. We humans love to take credit for our success — especially when we finally accomplish something meaningful. There’s nothing wrong with celebrating wins, but where I often fall short is forgetting who helped me get there.

Looking back, I see how my pride used to rob me of clarity. I thought I could rock this world alone — and that mindset became my greatest obstacle. God stepped in and humbled me, piece by piece. He removed anything I could credit to my own strength so I would finally say:
“God did this.”

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned is this:
Pride will never carry out our God-given purpose.

Scripture supports this so clearly:

Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”

I’m guilty of thinking I’m wiser or stronger than others. And God, in His mercy, places stumbling blocks right before me — not to punish me, but to remind me to stay humble. If we ignore our pride, we walk this earth blind to His purpose.

James 4:6 (NIV)
“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

Humility acknowledges our limitations. It invites God to intervene. When He knows we depend on Him, He guides us with clarity we could never earn on our own.

A few ways I’m learning to practice humility (and yes, I’m still learning):

• Serving without seeking praise
• Being open to correction
• Listening first, speaking second
• Admitting my limits
• Releasing self-sufficiency and depending on God

Humility is not thinking less of ourselves — it’s thinking of ourselves less.

Philippians 2:4 (NIV)
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves…”

A giving heart matters more than what we give. Even when we feel like we don’t have much to offer, God sees the willingness.

One of my favorite reminders:
“God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called.” He equips the people who pick up the phone and say “Yes.”

I keep coming across the same quote:
“The anointing does not flow from perfection, it flows from pressure.”

Olives must be crushed to release oil. Likewise, God often applies pressure — not to destroy us, but to prepare and refine us. Sometimes that pressure looks like a closed door, a hard “no,” or a curveball we never saw coming. Sometimes the breakthrough clarity comes in a week… other times, it takes years. But God is always working behind the scenes. His timing might confuse us, but His purpose never fails.

So this is a reminder — to you, and to myself: When you feel pressed, broken, and stretched — God is working.
All you need is faith the size of a mustard seed.

Matthew 17:20 (NIV)
“If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed… nothing will be impossible for you.”

Let’s not despise the season that breaks us. These waiting seasons — these unknowns — will one day become our greatest testimony. Hardship strengthens us, equips us, and leads us toward God’s good plan.

Here are a few verses that continue to encourage me:

• Jeremiah 29:11: NIV: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
• Romans 8:28 NIV: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”
• Proverbs 19:21 NIV: “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails”
• Psalm 18:30 NIV: “As for God, his way is perfect; the Lord’s word is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him”

And one of my top three favorite verses:

Romans 5:3-5 (NIV)
“…we glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope…”

My study Bible notes:
“In the future we will become, but until then, we must overcome.”

Trials are not meant to crush our hope — they are meant to build it. Hard seasons test our patience, shift our perspective, and draw us closer to God. When life feels heavy, we can either be defeated or be developed. So lets ask God to help us choose development.

Let’s embrace the refining. Let’s trust the pressure.
Let’s allow God to shape us into who we were created to be.

Because when God breaks us —
He is preparing to birth something beautiful.
Something stronger. Something new.