How to Get Breakthrough from God: Rest, Listen, and Rise in Victory
If you are a person who is praying for breakthrough and victory in a certain area of your life, saying, “God, how do I get my breakthrough?”
“How do I get through this battle and fight?”—take a step back. If you take a rest as the Holy Spirit is leading you to and meditate on His Word like we shared, then you’ll hear from Him and you’ll get the victory. Afterward, you’ll enter into a time of a prolonged rest.
Prolonged rest is a season of renewal. In this season that He has planned for you, what do you do in this special time? You build and you prosper.
Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God, for he removed the altars of the foreign gods and the high places, and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images. He commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to observe the law and the commandment. He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, and the kingdom was quiet under him. And he built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest; he had no war in those years, because the Lord had given him rest. Therefore he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and make walls around them, and towers, gates, and bars, while the land is yet before us, because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered (2 Chronicles 14:2-7 NKJV).
When you have prolonged times of rest, it doesn’t mean you don’t do anything. It’s a time for you build, prosper, and grow stronger at a slower pace. In the times of King Asa, the kingdom of Judah had a pro- longed period of rest. What did they wisely use that time to do? The Scriptures said they built and prospered. After Saul was converted in the Book of Acts, what did the early church experience? Acts 9:31 (KJV) says, “Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the com- fort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”
Saul was the chief persecutor and antagonist of the church. His conversion ended a reign of terror for the early Christians. They experienced rest from his attacks because of the great victory the Lord had accomplished. After that victory, the churches had rest, were strengthened, lived in reverence toward God, enjoyed the comforting encouragement of the Holy Spirit, and multiplied and increased.
You might say, “That sounds nice. When might I have this prolonged time of rest and prosperity? When’s this breakthrough going to happen for me?”
My question for you is, “What is He telling you to do?”
Get into this rhythm of rest. As you do, you will hear from Him. David inquired of the Lord, heard from Him, and had a breakthrough, and you can get the same breakthrough (2 Samuel 5:17-20).
David’s Example
In 2 Samuel 7:1, David experienced a time of rest on every side, just like Joshua and the children of Israel did. What did David do during that time? He set his heart to build a house for God. The Lord told David that his son would build the house. However, in this time of rest we see how God marvelously blessed David and established a special covenant promise with him. The promise was so wonderful to David that he overflowed with thanksgiving:
Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? And now, Sovereign Lord, in addition to everything else, you speak of giving your servant a lasting dynasty! Do you deal with everyone this way, O Sovereign Lord?
What more can I say to you? You know what your servant is really like, Sovereign Lord. Because of your promise and according to your will, you have done all these great things and have made them known to your servant.
How great you are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you. We have never even heard of another God like you! What other nation on earth is like your people Israel? What other nation, O God, have you redeemed from slavery to be your own people? You made a great name for yourself when you redeemed your people from Egypt. You performed awesome miracles and drove out the nations and gods that stood in their way. You made Israel your very own people forever, and you, O Lord, became their God.
And now, O Lord God, I am your servant; do as you have promised concerning me and my family. Confirm it as a promise that will last forever (2 Samuel 7:18-25 NLT).
David’s prayer of thanksgiving continued on for even more verses. I want to draw your attention to the fact that he received this wonderful promise of God during a time of prolonged rest. If you are going through a fight right now, there is a wonderful prolonged time of rest and building and strengthening and prosperity and enjoyment on the other side of this battle. In order to get there, you are going to have to rest when the Holy Spirit tells you to.
You will need to take some time to just chill, be still, and relax so that you can hear from God. As you hear, you will be able to recoup your strength so that you can finish this battle and enter into the prolonged time of rest. Your striving is not going to get you there. Your “no days off” mentality is not going to get you there. It will get you into some trouble, but it won’t get you into that rest.
When you take time to rest, following the instructions of the Spirit of God, getting into the rhythm of rest that is set by the Holy Spirit Himself, your actions are declaring that you will win the battle you’re facing. Remember, your decision to rest is an act of faith.
In obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit, your rest declares, “Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ” and “thanks be to God, who gives us the victory” (2 Corinthians 2:14; 1 Corinthians 15:57 NKJV).Your actions declare, “Because He gives me the victory, I’m going to sleep. Because He gives me the victory, I’m going to take time to sit down and rest.” As you rest, He will tell you what to do.
This is an important step for some of the breakthroughs you’re believing for and the victory that you are seeking. It’s important to rest because you are setting yourself up to hear more. When you take time to step away and to rest, you will hear from Him. It’s part of the rhythm.
Get into the rhythm of rest for your life. You will enjoy it. It will bless and enrich your life. The rhythm of rest flows from God’s love for you. Your rest is a declaration of faith in God who loves you! We walk by faith, we live by faith, and we rest by faith. While you rest, God will fight the battle on your behalf.
Reflection Questions
Consider these questions and write down your answers in your journal.
What battle or struggle are you dealing with right now?
As you pause and inquire of the Lord, what is He leading you to do?
What does victory look like?
What will you do during your time of prolonged rest that will follow your victory?
A Prayer for You to Pray
Father, I thank You that in Christ Jesus You always cause me to triumph. Thank You for always giving me the victory. Because You love me, I am more than a conqueror. I take this time to pause and ask for Your wisdom. How should I handle this challenge in front of me? I receive Your help and Your victory. Thank You! In Jesus’ Name, amen.
