Something is Breaking: Five Day Devotional

Here are a few additional resources to guide your quiet time this week:

• Watch the replay of "Something is Breaking" by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

• Use this small group discussion guide with family, friends, and co-workers.

• Join us for our 6 AM Prayer Call, Monday through Friday (EST)

Day 1: When God Has Your Number

Based on the Message: “Something is Breaking” by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

“But we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” - 1 Corinthians 1:23–24

Devotional: God's been texting you. You've seen the read receipts. You know He knows you saw the message. Yet somehow, you keep leaving Him on read, promising to respond later but never following through.

God's relentless pursuit of us is what theologians call the effectual call. Unlike the general call that goes out to everyone who hears the gospel, this internal call has your name written all over it. It's when you're sitting in a room full of people, but the preacher seems to be talking directly to you. It's when you're walking down the street and suddenly realize God is speaking to your heart.

God doesn't give up on busy signals or voicemail. He keeps calling because He sees something in you that only He can complete. Maybe you've been screening His calls for years, thinking you'll get your life together first. But here's the beautiful truth: He wants you to come as you are, with your problems, issues, difficulties, and addictions.

The question isn't whether God is calling: He is. The question is whether you'll finally pick up the phone and respond to His persistent love.

Quote: "Here's what I want to present to you today: God is calling you. But just like we can look at the caller ID in the natural and not respond... you can look at God's caller ID in the spiritual and not respond. - Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

Question: What specific ways has God been trying to get your attention lately, and what keeps you from fully responding to His call?

Prayer: Lord, I admit I've been screening Your calls, leaving You on read when You've been trying to reach me. Thank You for Your persistence and patience. Help me recognize Your voice above all the noise in my life. Give me the courage to finally pick up when You call and respond with my whole heart. In Jesus' name, amen.

Day 2: Breaking Free from Behavior Modification

Based on the Message: “Something is Breaking” by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" - 2 Corinthians 5:17

Devotional: A caterpillar can't decide to become a butterfly through sheer willpower. It doesn't attend butterfly classes or make New Year's resolutions about flying better. The transformation happens through metamorphosis. A complete change from the inside out that creates an entirely new creature.

This is the power of true conversion versus mere behavior modification. Too many people think being a Christian means trying harder to be good, attending church regularly, or checking off spiritual to-do lists. But God isn't interested in helping you become a better version of your old self. He wants to make you completely new.

Regeneration: being born again is God's sovereign work of imparting new spiritual life. It's not about improving your behavior; it's about receiving a new heart, new desires, new purposes. When the Holy Spirit regenerates you, you don't just start acting differently. You become someone different. Your church attendance flows from genuine worship, not religious obligation. Your changed behavior is evidence of internal transformation, not its cause.

The butterfly cannot and will not return to being a caterpillar. When God transforms your life, you become someone totally, completely new from the inside out.

Quote: "When God changes your life, it's not behavior modification. He changes you, transforms you. You become someone totally distinctly different." - Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

Question: Are you trying to modify your behavior to please God, or have you experienced the internal transformation that only He can provide?

Prayer: Father, forgive me for thinking I could change myself through effort and willpower. I don't want behavior modification. I want transformation. Do the work in me that only You can do. Make me new from the inside out, creating in me a clean heart and renewing a right spirit within me. Transform me by Your power, not my performance. Amen.

Day 3: The Turn That Changes Everything

Based on the Message: “Something is Breaking” by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord." - Acts 3:19

Devotional: Picture yourself walking away from someone calling your name. With each step, their voice grows fainter, but they keep calling. Eventually, you realize the disrespect of ignoring them and the foolishness of walking in the wrong direction. That moment when you stop, acknowledge their call, and turn around; that's repentance.

True repentance isn't just feeling sorry about your sin or promising to do better next time. It's a complete change of mind that produces a change of direction. It starts in your head with intellectual recognition: "This isn't right." It moves to your heart with emotional sorrow: "I'm grieved that I've offended God." Finally, it reaches your feet with volitional turning: "I'm heading in a different direction."

Repentance is the turn that changes everything. It's acknowledging you're lost and need a Savior. It's recognizing that the way you've been living is offensive to a holy God. It's the moment you stop trying to run your own life and surrender control to the One who calls your name with love.

God has been calling you, and His voice hasn't grown faint with distance. He's been persistent, patient, waiting for you to stop walking away and turn toward Him. The question is: will you keep walking, or will you make the turn?

Quote: "To live in rebellion of God is to walk in a direction opposite of Him. But when we finally respond to His call, we first stop and acknowledge that we're headed in the wrong direction. He's calls us we make a u-turn. That's repentance." - Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

Question: What direction has your life been heading, and what would it look like to turn completely toward God today?

Prayer: Lord, forgive me if I've been walking in the wrong direction, ignoring Your calls, doing my own thing. Today I choose to stop and turn around. I'm sorry for my sins and for the ways I've offended You. Help me walk in a new direction, following Your voice and Your ways. Thank You for never giving up on calling my name. Amen.

Day 4: Faith Beyond the Driver's Seat

Based on the Message: “Something is Breaking” by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight" - Proverbs 3:5-6

Devotional: You sit in chairs without thinking about it, trusting they'll hold your weight. You ride with certain people because you trust their driving. Yet when it comes to the Savior who created and sustains the universe, we grip the steering wheel of our lives as if our survival depended on it.

Faith isn't about making Jesus your co-pilot. It's about getting out of the driver's seat entirely. It's moving from "Lord, bless my plans" to "Lord, what are Your plans?" It's the recognition that your hands aren't qualified to steer your life through every season and situation.

Life has a way of revealing the limits of our control. Addictions we thought we could quit "anytime" that still have us bound seven years later. Toxic relationships that we can't seem to break free from. Health concerns that remind us of our mortality. These moments aren't punishments; they're invitations to surrender the wheel.

Saving faith requires placing your wholehearted trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ. It's believing that wherever He leads is worthy of following. Your Savior has enough strength to not only hold you up, but also to hold you together. There is none more trustworthy than Jesus Christ Himself.

Quote: "Giving your life to Jesus doesn't make Him your co-pilot. Faith is you getting out of the driver's seat and letting Jesus take the wheel. It's getting to the point where you trust that wherever He takes you, is a place worthy of going."- Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

Question: What areas of your life are you still trying to control instead of trusting completely to Jesus?

Prayer: Jesus, I confess I've been trying to be my own driver, making You a co-pilot at best. Today I choose to get out of the driver's seat and trust You completely. Take the wheel of my life. Lead me where You want me to go. I trust that wherever You take me is a place worthy of going. You are more trustworthy than anyone or anything else. Amen.

Day 5: Marking Your Spiritual Birthday

Based on the Message: “Something is Breaking” by Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." - 1 John 5:13

Devotional: You didn't contribute anything to your natural birth. You were just born. You celebrate that birthday every year with cake and gifts, commemorating something you had no part in creating. Similarly, your salvation is entirely God's work, not your achievement, yet it deserves even greater celebration.

Some people can pinpoint the exact moment they were born again. Others experienced a gradual awakening to faith and can't identify a specific date. Both experiences are valid, but every believer should be able to mark a season in their life when they were converted, not when they joined a church or started attending services, but when they genuinely repented and placed their faith in Jesus.

The question isn't whether you can pull out a spiritual birth certificate with date and time. The question is: today, are you confident that you've been converted? Can you point to evidence of regeneration in your life? Has there been a fundamental change in your heart's desires and life's direction?

God wants you to be clear about where you stand with Him. In these tumultuous times, He's drawing people to Himself and strengthening our fellowship with Him. You should be able to reflect on your spiritual birthday with the same confidence you have about your natural birth.

Quote: "Isn't it amazing how we can mark the day of our birth and celebrate our natural birth, and then be so fuzzy and unclear about our salvation? Here's what I need you to understand. If you are saved, I need you to walk away today confident that you are born again" - Pastor Dexter B. Upshaw Jr.

Question: When you look at your life, what evidence do you see of spiritual transformation and new birth in Christ?

Prayer: Father, thank You for the gift of salvation that I did nothing to earn or contribute to. Help me to be confident in the work You've done in my life. If there are areas of uncertainty, make them clear. I want to know that I know that I've been born again, not just attending church or going through religious motions, but truly converted and transformed by Your power. In Jesus' name, amen.