I say:
I'm ready to break walls with my shout.
Waiting for God's strength to break forth through me.
Thou voice in me, I command you, SHOUT!
But He whispers:
"People break walls with more than a shout."
Really? How do they do that? What about the walls of Jericho? Surely, they broke down those walls with a shout. He whispers again. It's barely audible, but I hear Him. "You need more than a shout."
Most of us are familiar with the song that goes like this, "the walls of Jericho fell down flat, the walls of Jericho fell down flat, when the children of God were praising the Lord, the walls of Jericho fell down flat."
That song has this unmistakable vibe to it. It makes me feel like I'm about to destroy the devil's camp, like I'm part of a marching army, a hero-in-the-making...as though a movie director is in the background shouting to me from the other side of the set, "Lights. Camera. Action!" I'm dressed for the scene and all I need to do is SHOUT when the trumpets sound. Fiction or not, some walls are going to have to come crashing down.
Wait, wait, wait. Hold up! Rewind!
People break walls with more than a shout!
There are some important things we need to do before we even dare to shout.
I) Know the plan. Before Joshua executed this idea of marching around Jericho and 'shouting', He knew the plan. God had already told Him that they would take over the city. And even after that, Joshua sent two spies into the land to confirm if it was time to move. The men came back and said, "The people's hearts are fluttering because they've heard stories about God parting the Red Sea for us." Aha, that confirmed everything. So Joshua was certain that God's hand was in this and that He wanted them to get this territory. He had already paved the way by allowing terror to fall on the people. The road was zoned, the map plotted. The plan was set. If God is not in it, your shouting ain't gonna crash any walls.
People break walls with more than a shout!
II) Follow the instructions. The truth is many of us love shortcuts. I mean, we have shortcuts for everything under the sun. We have drive-throughs at banks, vending machines at work, pre-packaged lunches from grocery stores, and millions of Apps for our smart-phones. We're in a microwaveable generation where it's always time to go! But God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He still wants us to absorb the moment and take solid steps (not shortcuts), take in the entire process and build our character/personalities while we're at it. The instructions for taking down Jericho were: 1) Pack food and water because you will need it. 2) Cross over the Jordan River on dry land (it took them 10 days to walk through the river). 3) Every day (for 7 days) wake up in the morning and walk around the walls of Jericho 7 times (if you calculate the amount of times they walked around the city in those 7 days, it would be 7 * 7 = 49). 4) On the 7th day (and the 7th walk) when you hear the trumpets, give a loud shout (this is when the "shout" finally surfaces).
People break walls with more than a shout. But they also take over cities with more than broken walls.
III) Go in and fight for victory. What many of us miss is the action after the prayer. The fighting after the shout. The doing after the talking. The execution after the strategy. We're all puff and no smoke most times. If the children of Israel had only shouted, the walls would have crashed, yes, but the city still would not have been taken if the people had not actually fought the battle. (For full story, read Joshua Chapters 1-6)
So people break walls with more than a shout. But they also take over cities with more than broken walls.
I am so excited about this lesson that I am looking forward to applying it to my life soon. I hope you are too. Let us break down walls with more than our shouting, and let us take over cities with more than broken walls. Dear Readers, I hope you understand this. May God bless you and empower you to achieve victories by listening to Him for valid instructions this year.
