What man-made structure is 5,500 miles long and visible from space?
The Great Wall of China, of course.
In 2011 my husband and I had the opportunity to visit this astounding landmark. Simply standing on the Great Wall left me breathless. I could hardly believe the immensity of it. From where I stood, it seemed to go on forever.
Once we began walking on the wall, I became even more breathless. The wall is built on the ridge of a mountain range and is rarely level. While we were walking there, we were either going up or down. Although it’s hard to show the steep incline on a two-dimensional photo here’s a sample of what we experienced:
The Great Wall was built to protect China from invaders. Although parts of it date back as far as the 7th century B.C., most of it was built in the 14th century A.D. It was built by soldiers, common people, slaves, and criminals.
Although the finished wall did indeed help protect China from the invading Monguls, it was built at great cost. Many people died during its construction and stories are told that often those who died were simply buried under the stones and bricks while others kept on working.
Thinking about the Great Wall and its cost in materials and human life, made me realize that often the walls I try to build to protect myself usually have a great personal cost as well.
One wall that I am often tempted to build is one to protect my pride and my control of my own life.
Instead of blocks of stone, I erect brick after brick of:
Insistence-On-My-Way
Directing-My-Own-Life
Stubbornly-Refusing-To-Yield
A few years ago I sensed a rift in my relationship with God.
My Heavenly Father seemed far away.
Prayers seemed to bounce off the ceiling.
Devotional time seemed dry and boring.
Reading the Bible brought no new insights.
God then showed me that I had built a wall of pride. Probably I built the wall as a testimony to my skill and abilities. I constructed it as a means to protect my own plans. I erected it to prevent the unthinkable–failure.
However, the wall ended up blocking my view of God. I could no longer see Him clearly. I felt distant from Him even though He was patiently waiting on the other side of the wall.
Psalm 10:4 talks about this experience:
In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
My pride had shut out God.
When I realized that my wall was doing more harm than good, I asked God to help me dismantle it. Brick by brick, I began to set aside my pride, my plans, and my self-sufficiency.
It was only then that I was able to clearly see God’s goodness, grace, and love.
Next step: Have you built a wall that you thought was helpful, only to find out it was harmful? Ask God to help you dismantle that wall. He is always with you, but our walls of pride may prevent us from sensing His presence.