Podcast Summary: "The Blessing in the Breaking"

Podcast: Jentezen Franklin at Free Chapel
Speaker: Courteney Bence
Date: September 21, 2025

Main Theme

In this powerful message, Courteney Bence explores the profound spiritual principle that blessing often comes through breaking. Using the miracle of Jesus feeding the five thousand (Matthew 14:13–21), she identifies a fourfold process—taking, blessing, breaking, and multiplying—and applies it to the journeys of faith, healing, and personal surrender. Courteney weaves biblical truths, personal testimony, and practical insights, inviting listeners to view life's hardships not as ends, but as beginnings for God's miraculous work.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Opening Worship and Acknowledgements

• Courteney opens with praise, setting a spiritually charged and communal tone.
• Lightheartedly shares her willingness to fill in for her father, Jentezen Franklin, while he travels, showcasing her personable and approachable style.
• Announces events, notably the Divine Conference, rooting the message in community and present church life.
  (02:45–07:00)

Focus on Matthew 14 – Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes

• Central Passage: Jesus feeding the five thousand—presented as the only miracle (aside from the Resurrection) recorded in all four Gospels, emphasizing its importance.
  (08:00)
• Breakdown of the Miracle:
  • Jesus took the bread and fish.
  • He blessed them.
  • He broke them.
  • He multiplied them.
• Emphasizes not to skip over the process that precedes the miracle: “He took it, He blessed it, He broke it, He multiplied it.”
  (09:30)

Fourfold Process: Take, Bless, Break, Multiply

1. He Took It

(10:45–18:00)

• Surrendering to God means giving up control: "He can't bless what you won't let him take.” (16:30)
• Illustrates how holding onto control prevents us from experiencing God’s miracles: “We want to carry around God-sized burdens on human-sized shoulders.” (11:30)
• Trust is described as “disciplined thinking” and not a passive feeling.
• The importance of not only casting cares but fully releasing them, using metaphors of fishing and tug-of-war.
• Emphasizes practicing trust through prayer (closeness) and Scripture (renewing the mind).

2. He Blessed It

(18:05–22:30)

• Jesus blessed the insufficient offering before it changed, illustrating God’s ability to bless what we bring, no matter how messy or inadequate.
• “He looks at the mess that is you and I and He blesses us anyway. And I am so thankful for that today—are you?” (19:20)
• The blessing is fundamentally found in His presence, not just in outward success or provision.
• Warns against spiritual complacency when blessed and the need to continuously press into God’s purpose.

3. He Broke It

(22:40–35:00)

• The Hardest Step: Nobody volunteers for brokenness, yet it is necessary for growth and transformation.
• Quotes John 16: “In this world you will have trouble... But take heart, I have overcome the world.”
• God breaks us to remake us: “Charles Spurgeon said, 'Whenever God means to make a man great, He always breaks him into pieces first.'” (24:35)
• Extensive imagery: Muscles only grow when torn down; seeds must break to grow; grapes must be crushed to make wine; olives must be pressed to yield oil.
• The breaking is described not as God’s cruelty, but His loving reformation.
• “Crushing does not destroy you. It anoints you.” (27:20)
• Encourages giving God an “ugly” praise, worshipping from pain, not just prettiness.

4. He Multiplied It

(35:05–38:30)

• After surrender, blessing, and breaking comes the multiplication—the miraculous expansion of what seemed insufficient.
• “What feels like subtraction in life is often multiplication in his hands.” (36:00)
• The miracle was not just about bread, but a foreshadowing of Christ Himself—broken and multiplied for our salvation.
• This process applies to the believer: Your story and testimony become a source of life for others.

Jesus as the Ultimate Broken Bread

(38:35–41:00)

• Isaiah 53 is highlighted: Jesus was willingly broken, crushed for humanity’s sin.
• “It pleased the Lord to crush Him... not because God delighted in His Son's pain, but because He delighted in the salvation that would come from his suffering.” (39:45)
• Jesus’ anguish in Gethsemane—“He knows anguish. He knows grief. He knows what it feels like to be crushed. And he faced every bit of it alone so that you and I would never have to.” (40:00)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “He can't bless what you won’t let him take.” (16:30, Courteney Bence)
• “Trust is simply disciplined thinking.” (13:45)
• “Crushing does not destroy you. It anoints you.” (27:20)
• “The blessing isn’t in things working out. The blessing is in His presence.” (19:25)
• “He breaks us not to destroy us but to broaden us... to expand our capacity to multiply our lives beyond what we thought was possible.” (34:40)
• “What feels like subtraction in life is often multiplication in his hands.” (36:00)
• “It pleased the Lord to crush him... because he delighted in the salvation that would come from his suffering.” (39:45)

Important Timestamps

• 00:39–07:00 – Worship, introductions, announcements
• 08:00 – Introduction of Matthew 14, contextualizing the miracle
• 09:30 – The four-step process: take, bless, break, multiply
• 10:45–18:00 – Surrender and “He took it”
• 18:05–22:30 – Receiving God’s blessing and presence
• 22:40–35:00 – The necessity and value of brokenness
• 35:05–38:30 – Multiplication, testimony, and mission
• 38:35–41:00 – Jesus as the fulfillment of the “broken bread”
• 41:00–42:45 – Invitation to personal faith and surrender

Takeaways for Listeners

• The story of the loaves and fish is also the story of every believer: God wants what you’re holding, ready to bless it, strengthen you in the breaking, and multiply it for His glory.
• Surrender is the start—what are you clutching that God cannot multiply?
• Brokenness is not the end, but the beginning of new life, healing, and impact.
• Jesus modeled the ultimate brokenness for our sake; by embracing this process, we walk in His resurrection life and purpose.

For Reflection

• Are you in a season of taking, blessing, breaking, or multiplying?
• What do you need to surrender so God can begin the miracle in your life?
• How is God using your brokenness to anoint and multiply you for others?

This message is a profound encouragement that with God, there is always a blessing—and often, it’s discovered in what is first broken.