Three Lessons I Learned from Hitting the Wall (Literally)

I ran into a glass door in front of my family at our Christmas dinner...

And let me tell you, it hurt. I was attempting to be helpful by scurrying dishes from the table on the porch where we were enjoying a nice meal into the house to the dishwasher when I ran smack dab into an invisible barrier… literally. Adrenaline masked the pain for a solid 2.5 seconds, and then it came flooding over me. My knee, eye, head, pride… it all hurt!

What made the whole scenario even worse was that my daughter began wailing at the sight of her mother stupidly injuring herself on a glass door. As moms do, I began consoling my tearful daughter as the pain started to settle in. 

The thoughts came and went:

Why didn’t you pay attention?

How could you do something so stupid?

Gosh, my head hurts.

Is that gravy on my sweatshirt?!

I have a weird brain. In hindsight, hitting that glass wall taught me some lessons.

First, keep your head up when you walk. What a concept!

Second, be alert. You never know when you could hit the wall… not necessarily a physical wall (although I’ll also be looking for those from now on) but a metaphorical wall of exhaustion. I have BIG plans, and big plans consume time— time I could be eating and sleeping, for example. I can be a whole lot like our friend, the energizer bunny, who keeps going and going and going until she is sucked dry of all battery life and can go no more. It’s a problem, I know.

Isaiah 40:30-31 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

I need not forget that my body has just a few fundamental survival needs… and if I neglect these, those goals won’t mean a thing!

Jeremiah 31:25 I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.

The third lesson I learned is to keep your eyes on the end game. Had I kept my eyes on the kitchen where I was headed that fateful slamming-into-door day, I would have noticed that the door remained closed, and I could have taken the time to open it. Spiritually speaking, my eyes should be fixed on eternity because my home is not here! That endgame is sweet; this solid truth should drive every other part of my life.

II Corinthians 4:18 So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Plus, there is an enemy. He is intelligent, crafty, and on the prowl, waiting for the perfect moment to slip an invisible wall directly into my path. He sees when my eyes have drifted away from eternity and from the Savior who lost everything so I could be found! He knows my weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and insecurities, and He’s ready to do his favorite job as THE accuser. Boy, is he good at it.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.

But he doesn’t have to win—no, ma’am, not at all! I need to keep my eyes on the prize.

It’s strange how God takes the most mundane and silly of accidents to teach BIG lessons. He never ceases to drive His points home to my heart when needed… and this girl needs them often. 

What has God been teaching you lately? I hope and pray you’re listening because the Holy Spirit is always moving… yes, even when "we" run headfirst into glass doors. ;)