Walls

Mike couldnt be here today. He tested positive for covid. He found out less than 24 hours ago, which didn’t give me much time to prepare. but like Mike told me “It’ll be fine, the word of God never goes out in vain.” So I stopped and prayed and God gave me direction.

Lets pray.

This weekend there was a men’s convention in Lebanon and it was pretty amazing. Mike was one of the speakers and he did a great job. There was a lot of good stuff about being a Godly man, battling, being a good Son before being a good man and father.

1 Question 1 statement and 1 moment really stood out to me.

What is Holding you back from doing what God wants you to be doing.

The pretty famous quote, not sure where it originated.

Lord break my heart for what breaks yours.

and the moment was when all the men were call to the front of the stage during a worship song. I was standing the and i could feel the spirit, however as guys were falling on their knees and weeping I realize i wasn’t feeling what most people would in a moment like that. That night i came home and told my wife and she said someone told her that same night that i probably have an emotion wall up. Yesterday i spent a lot of time in prayer at the conference and when the Mike quoted Lord break my heart for what breaks your. I had an epiphany. He won’t if i don’t want Him to.

Our Heart can’t break with God’s if it’s walled off from Him.

I spent a lot of time at the conference praying for God to tear down these walls I’ve built. Last nightt God put this message on my heart.

We all have walls and walls can be useful or detrimental. Walls are used to keep things out or in they can also be used as bounderies.

Lets take a look at the fall of Jericho. Open to Joshua 6:1-21

The New International Version Chapter 6

6 Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in.

2 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. 3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

Notice that before anything even happened God said i have delivered Jericho into your hands.

The New International Version Chapter 6

6 So Joshua son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant of the LORD and have seven priests carry trumpets in front of it.” 7 And he ordered the army, “Advance! March around the city, with an armed guard going ahead of the ark of the LORD.”

8 When Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets before the LORD went forward, blowing their trumpets, and the ark of the LORD’s covenant followed them. 9 The armed guard marched ahead of the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard followed the ark. All this time the trumpets were sounding. 10 But Joshua had commanded the army, “Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!” 11 So he had the ark of the LORD carried around the city, circling it once. Then the army returned to camp and spent the night there.

12 Joshua got up early the next morning and the priests took up the ark of the LORD. 13 The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward, marching before the ark of the LORD and blowing the trumpets. The armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets kept sounding. 14 So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days.

15 On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times. 16 The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the army, “Shout! For the LORD has given you the city! 17 The city and all that is in it are to be devoted e to the LORD. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent. 18 But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. 19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the LORD and must go into his treasury.”

20 When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city. 21 They devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.

God will often use unconventional methods and unlikely people to bring walls down.

Like i said walls can be useful we need boundaries in our life. We need protection. The problem comes in when we get hurt by life and we build walls around our heart and let nothing in and nothing out. Kinda like the walls of Jericho. I’ve been hurt and abused,by people and life. I’ve built up an emotional wall where i little comes in our out. And I’ve been Guarding that wall because of fear, fear that i might break if it comes down, or i might get hurt again. The problem is that i can’t fully allow God to use me and be the husband and father i need to be with these walls up.

Close your eyes i’m going to ask you 2 questions and the first things that pop in your head are the answers. Listen with your heart and Holy Sprit will tell you.

What holding you back from doing what God’s purpose for you is?

What walls have you built up that you need God to tear down.

I have some paper up here and what i would like is for us to write down our answers and throw them in this trash can. then i’m going to pray and later take them home and send these things holding us back to a fiery death. I’m also going to open up the floor if anyone has prayer requests or praises, or if you want to open up to the church about what you wrote down. If you’re watching online message our facebook page with your answers so we can pray for you.

We have one last song, if you need prayer or you haven’t surrendered your lif to Jesus we’ll have a couple people in back ready to pray or talk to you about Jesus.