Surrender Control // Learning To RelaxSample

How to Make the Walls Come Down

I know about the walls. I know you feel them. I know you sense them. Everything in you responds to the walls pressing in. Above. Below. On every side. They are all you can see, sometimes. I know.

It feels dark here. The walls make you believe that here, here, light surely can’t shine. That there is no way out. That you are alone. That you are trapped. That the darkness pressing will surely suffocate you. But it won’t. It won’t. I am here. I know where you are. I know the way out. I am the way. I am the way. So, you have the key.

You see, because I am with you, because I never leave you, the walls that make you feel trapped can come down. They can come down. 

I am the key. I am the key. I give you myself. This gift is no ordinary key.

So how will you use it? How will you use this key that breaks down these walls, these oppressive walls suffocating your precious heart?

Let my Son into the places in your heart you have never let him into before. Let him in. Let him break down the walls that press in. Let him ease the tension on all sides. Let him shine light here. Let him repair your broken heart. 

It is with courage that a wall is destroyed. It is with courage that a wall is recognized and brought low. It is with determination—daily surrender and faith—that the walls of your heart come down. 

And with me, you can do this.

There are many layers—fortifications of the wall: pride, pain, deceit, shame, And for each layer, you have a key. Jesus approaches each layer. Asks your permission. Then tears down every layer of the wall. You see, we want no wall left standing. We want nothing to separate you from me.

Use the key; watch Jesus tear down the walls that imprison. Do not stay locked up, trapped in insecurity, doubt, resentment, fear, sin.

Come, be free. Come beyond walls that make you feel powerless, defenseless, frail and discouraged. This is not for you now. This is not for you.

So the walls must come down, son. The walls must come down, daughter. Let me in, dear one. Let me in.

Exercise:

We each have walls behind which we hide—hide from other people, hide from our true selves, hide from God. We’ve built bunkers over the years, as defenses for ourselves after we’ve made bad choices, or after we’ve had terrible things done to us. We convince ourselves it’s safe behind those walls. And years go by. And nothing changes—nothing except that we experience more isolation and more pain as we ignore our need for help, our desperation for healing, our desire for Jesus to shine His light where it feels so hopeless and sad and so dark. 

You might be able to name your wall. You might know it well. You might be quite aware of how it feels to be protected by it—to be stuck behind it. It’s been the reality of your life for years now. But, Jesus is with you in your hiding place. Did you know that? He loves you and never leaves—no matter where you are. But He wants to show you the beautiful, broad territory of hope and peace and healing that exists outside the bunker you’ve built. There is so much more for you. There is so much more if you’ll let Jesus bring healing to the places in your heart you’ve never allowed Him to heal.

Do you want Him to give Him permission now? Do you want to come out, into the light and fresh air, and leave that old bunker behind? Are you tired? Do you trust Him? Will you let Jesus be the one who guards your heart from now on? Will you let Him protect and heal the broken, hurting places in your heart—the ones you’ve worked so hard to protect and heal yourself?

Let’s surrender our minds and our imaginations to Jesus. Let’s invite Him to show us a picture of this wall in our heart.

Jesus, what does it look like? Show me the material. Show me the texture. Show me the colors, the smells, the feel of the wall as I touch it with my hands.

Now, show me what I look like, as I hide behind this wall?

Jesus, what is this wall? Why is it here? What pain or wound or shame does it protect? What fear? What deceit? What idolatry or sexual immorality? What rejection or abandonment? What abuse? What loneliness or selfishness? What brokenness?

Jesus, will you name it for me? What does my wall protect?

Now, Jesus, where are you? Will you help me to see you, near my wall?

Do you see Him?

Now, look down at Jesus’ hand. He holds a key. Take a good look at it. Notice its shape, its color, its texture. 

Feel its weight in your hand as Jesus hands you the key. 

Now, watch as Jesus points to a place in the wall. Watch Him as He points toward a small keyhole—the place for which this key was made.

It is a way out! Because you can now see that the keyhole sits in a door.

But the door is sealed shut.

Jesus asks you if you want to put the key into the door. . . . to unlock it and open it.

What do you say?

When you say yes, Jesus smiles and nods and looks toward the keyhole. You move forward and insert the key. But it feels like it’s stuck—immovable, jammed, impossible to turn. Your frustration flairs a bit. What’s the point of a key if it doesn’t work? You turn to Jesus. And He puts a hand on your shoulder, gently. And He puts his other hand on your hand—the hand with the key. Against the back of your hand, you feel the scar on His palm.  

And with what seems like very little effort and no hesitation, Jesus—His hand over your hand—turns the key and kicks the door wide open with his foot.

And that’s when it happens, the sound almost deafening. The whole wall comes crashing down. 

With the wall down, what do you see? Take a moment to look around. To the left, to the right. Above you, and straight ahead . . . and then beyond. 

You’ve now given Jesus permission to come into one of the places in your heart that you have, until now, kept hidden and dark. But this is just the beginning of healing. For, now that you’ve let Him into this vulnerable place, Jesus’ healing will only continue. So you have a lot of goodness in store. For with Him, no matter where you are, it is always just the beginning.

Jesus, keep coming. Keep coming for me. Keep inviting me to let you break down the walls in my heart. Keep asking to come into the places where I haven’t allowed your healing. I love you. I trust you. I want more of you in my life.

Further and higher now, Jesus. Let’s go. I want all you have for me.