Sep 27 | When You Hit A Wall | Barry Rodriguez

Today we’re going to talk about how we as Christ-followers should respond when the dream dies, when we hit the wall, when things fall apart. Read Ephesians 6:10-18 Throughout this letter, the Apostle Paul is painting a picture of how Christ-followers should live and behave in the midst of this still broken world. Spiritual warfare is real, we do have an enemy. But what the enemy is and how it operates in our world is far more mysterious than we often want to admit. Throughout the whole Bible you see one primary spiritual being who is directly opposed to the purposes of God. The one coordinating these dark rulers and spirits and powers. The one we call Satan, or the Devil. When the dream dies, when the bottom falls out, when we are in a crisis we can’t see our way through, the slanderer is right there ready to strike us down with doubt, with shame, with confusion… the adversary is looking to entangle us in broken, worldly systems of greed and hatred and injustice… He knows Christ is victorious, but he still wants us out of the fight, and This whole concept of the armor of God was not actually Paul’s idea. He was building on something he read in the book of Isaiah in the Old Testament.   The armor of God was Isaiah’s way of describing God bringing his intentions to fruition. An end to injustice. An end to oppression. This broken world made right. That’s what he’s fighting for. Imagine God is talking directly to you. He says, “Look. You are going through an awful time right now in this broken world. Or you’ve got some hard days coming. You’re going to hit the wall. Your dreams will fall apart. And when that happens, the slanderer is going to throw everything he’s got at you. He’s wants you to be afraid. To give up. So here. Take my armor.”he knows that in the middle of our worst moments, we’re very, very vulnerable to his schemes. You will face hardship. Your life may not end up the way you think. But you are wearing God’s armor now and you have nothing to fear. And here are 3 things to remember: 1. God is still working. The truth is, the same God who was going to war against oppression in Isaiah, who was fighting the dark powers in Ephesus, is right now battling the brokenness of your world. We may not see it. It may not be on our timetable. But God is still working. 2. It’s not your power. When it comes to enduring the challenges of a broken world, one of our biggest temptations will be to try and muster the strength within ourselves to power through. It’s no surprise. Self-reliance is the American way. 3. You are not alone. I bring this up to remind you that if you’re going through the deep waters right now. If you feel surrounded by forces beyond your control. I want you to remember that you are wearing the armor of God, and you’re standing shoulder to shoulder with others wearing it too. Don’t face your crisis alone.   With God’s armor protecting you, you will stand strong.