Key Verse: Zechariah 4:7: “Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it,” (KJV).
We are daily confronted with impossible barriers. Each of us is confronted with barriers; something that will be stopping us from getting to the place that God wants us to be. Sometimes, these barriers could be there for a very long time. It would seem like there is something you are not able to push again. You are just struggling to cross something – a limitation that has been placed on you. And you find it very difficult to break through. The good news is that barriers can be broken with God.
The Bible says: “For with God nothing shall be impossible,” (Luke 1:37). On the morning of May 6, 1954, Sir Roger Bannister did the impossible. Roger Bannister, the then 25-year-old Oxford University medical student, from England broke the four-minute rule set for a mile. The world had come to accept that it was impossible for someone to run a mile under four minutes. Bannister ran the mile under four minutes! He ran it for 3minutes 59.4 seconds. He beat the existing records by six seconds and proved that the barrier of 4-minute mile could be broken. He broke the World Guinness Records. Something that for 80years, nobody could do and now, Bannister did it.
Most times barrier may seems very big; but they really exist only in our minds. Zechariah 4:7 asked a very important question: “What art thou, O great mountain?” Mountain is a great obstacle and it may appear insurmountable and immoveable. But look at what the scripture says concerning the mountain that may appear insurmountable: “Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain.” In other words, the mountain shall sink into nothing. The obstacle shall give way, the difficulty vanishes and the opposition ceases. Removing mountains or levelling them into plains, are proverbial expressions, denoting the overcoming of the greatest difficulties, and removing all obstacles. The angel here encourages Zerubbabel to go on with his undertaking of rebuilding the temple, and restoring the Jewish state, assuring him that all the endeavours of the Samaritans, and of others of the neighbouring people to hinder him, would be fruitless, and that nothing should be able to withstand him.
Many barriers of impossibilities are myth, but we have come to accept them as reality. So, think about all the barriers you have faced in your life, in your family, in our nation; especially for us Africans. The barriers about the things we cannot do. Sometimes you hear us, ourselves, saying: ‘As for the black man, he can’t do this! When will Africa ever develop? We speak about these barriers as if they are impossibilities.
In 1 Samuel 17:3-4, the Israelites and the Philistines fought an interesting battle. The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side and the Israelites stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them.
Goliath, the Philistine came out and defied the army of Israel and for 40 days nobody could come out. Instead of having 40 days of power, they were having 40 days of weakness. All the trained soldiers and the King were afraid. But the story changed! There was a turn around. David showed up on the scene; he decided to take on the barrier. He slung a stone; hit the forehead of Goliath, and Goliath fell face forward.
• Today’s nugget: Barriers are myth; not reality. Prayer: Let every barrier in my life be removed.Prayer lines: 08033299824. E-mail: [email protected]. Rev. Abel UkachiAmadi, General Superintendent,Assemblies of God Nigeria.
