Break Through the Wall

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Philippians 4:13)
You're running the race set before you, moving full speed ahead with God's blessing overtaking you at every step. Then suddenly, wham! You hit the wall. It may be a wall of sickness or financial trouble, of spiritual failure or family problems. But, regardless of the form it takes, the effect of "the wall" is always the same. It stops you cold.

The question is, once you hit a wall like that, what will you do? You'll be tempted to quit, to turn back in defeat. But don't do it. Because God will enable you to break through that wall and keep right on going.

Playing in the Mud

Written by Kristi Huseby

 Are you struggling with feelings of sadness, loneliness or despair? Need someone to listen? We’re here. Talk to a mentor.

“And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of His face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like Him.” (2 Corinthians 3:17-18, The Message)

What is it about boys and mud? It attracts them like bees to honey! If there was any mud to be found in our back yard, my four boys would find it. They would never carefully step around a mud puddle. Oh no, they would stomp right into the middle of it! I can’t tell you how many times I would go out to the backyard and find them playing in a mud puddle and rubbing mud all over each other. They would often try to clean themselves before I found them but that only made matters worse. The only way to get them clean was to spray them down with a hose and get them into the bathtub for a good soak.

Nurture Your Garden

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. — Galatians 5:22-23

Apples are a natural result of an appleseed uniting with the elements necessary for growth. The fruit of the Holy Spirit is the natural result of the union of God's Spirit with your spirit. You have potential for fruitful living, because Jesus is your source! You have the ability to manifest every one of the gifts of the Spirit, because He is the vine and you are a branch! Because He is love, you can love. Because He is peace, you can have peace.

If you are lacking fruit, it is because God's Spirit cannot freely flow through you. Determine to cut away every lust of the flesh, lust of the eye, and pride of life that hinders fruit from coming forth. Nurture the fruit of a Spirit-filled life with the Word of God and prayer and watch your fruit grow!

Does anything hinder the flow of His Spirit in Your life today? Tear down the walls and barriers that hinder His Spirit. Let His Spirit flow freely through your life.

Taking Sides

He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall. EPHESIANS 2:14

Simon and Chana Taub of Brooklyn broke up housekeeping after 20 years of marriage—divorcing and going their separate ways. Sort of.

He went to the living room on the first floor, and she took the bedroom level on the third floor. And just to be sure they didn't bump into each other on the second floor—to which they both had partial access—a judge ordered that a partition be erected at the staircase, blocking them from accidentally crossing paths.

Now, I've seen the pictures of it myself on the Internet. An actual slab of white drywall, cut to fit a doorway opening in their richly ornate home. It's a stark representation of the stubborn walls of isolation that are nailed up in far too many homes across our land. Walls of silence. Walls of distance. Walls of unresolved issues. Walls built to the thickest dimensions with the materials of misunderstanding, impatience, annoyance and ridicule.