Living in Your Fortified Place

Build That Wall God tears down walls that divide, and builds walls to protect. Within these protective walls is your fortified place where the enemy cannot touch you. "For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous..." Psalm 125:3 • Peace builds a wall of protection. "For He has strengthened the bars of your gates...He makes peace in your borders..." Psalm 147: 11,13,14 God goes to great lengths to display His mercy in the life of a believer--especially one that is called to teach His Word. • Prayer builds a wall of protection. "I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land that I should not destroy it, but I found no one..." Ezekiel 22:30 You can create a no-fly zone in prayer. As God's intercessor-on-assignment you can take your land, establish your borders, and re-dig your wells. • Grace builds a wall of protection. "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9 Paul sought the Lord for deliverance from a difficult problem in his life. God answered with this word. The word "sufficient" suggests the idea of "raising a barrier" or "warding off". What a thought! When circumstances around you seem overwhelming--impossible to bear, God's grace is there to protect you, raising a powerful wall of protection or driving away the problem entirely. "Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more". Romans 5:20b When you feel sin has locked you behind prison walls you can cry out for more grace. We can never define the limitless grace of God. It will always be "much more" than needed or necessary to set you free from the separating walls of sin and into a fortified place of God's protection. • Sanctification builds a wall of protection. The word sanctification means set-apart, dedicate, become holy. Sanctification is like a wall or boundary. It is the sphere of God's love, His protection, and His provision that sets you apart to belong to Him and only Him. Jesus said, "And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they [that's you] also may be sanctified by the truth." John 17:19 David knew his boundaries were set and established by God's sovereign plan. "O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You have hedged me behind and before and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it." Psalm 139:5,6 The word "hedged" suggests a protective boundary guarding you. You and I can identify with this scripture. I remember feeling a similar emotion the night the Holy Spirit woke me with these words: "Gloria, draw a circle and a dot." Without knowing anything more when I drew the circle and placed a dot in the center I thought, This is so cool. I'm surrounded. Any direction I turn, God has me covered. Later I learned that Titus 2:14 declares protection for every believer. The word "peculiar" (or special) is pictured as a circle and a dot. The circle is God the Father; God the Son; and God the Holy Spirit providing love, protection, and provision for His own. The dot is you. You are surrounded by His protection. "(Jesus Christ) who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people (or purify unto Himself a peculiar people)..." Titus 2:14 • Truth builds a wall of protection. Truth is something you can stake your life upon- the absolute standard found in God. "Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth..."Ephesians 6:14a Truth sets you free from the enemy's deception, as well as sin. You must know truth by personal relationship with Jesus Himself who is "the way, the truth, and the life", then you will know the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit who lives in every true believer. His job is to guide you into all truth. (John 16:13) The devil is a liar and the father of lies. To defeat him you must stand strong for truth--cherish truth--speak truth--guard truth--believe truth. We are hearing a lot of talk about building a wall to protect our borders. It is such a delicate subject. One thing is for sure and certain, God, Himself protects His own.