Walking Through Walls

Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” John 20:26

Ever felt like you were up against a wall? Stuck. Stalled. Stymied. Smack-dab against a cold, hard, unyielding barrier with absolutely no way out. You can’t go back, you can’t go sideways, it’s too high to climb, it’s impossible to tunnel underneath, and there are no detours. What do you do? A friend once told me, “Joni, when you’re up against a wall, the only thing you can do is start walking through it.” Sound impossible? Of course it is! Whoever heard of anyone walking through a wall? Well, someone did. In the Upper Room, Jesus suddenly appeared in the midst of his frightened, discouraged disciples.

The door was closed, the walls were thick, and there was no entry or exit. But Jesus came in anyway. Jesus did the impossible. And he is constantly asking us to do the impossible. When we face the wall—whether it be pain, an emotionally unbearable circumstance, or a difficult situation beyond anything we’ve ever encountered before—God wants us to walk through that wall. As we take that first step into impossibility, we will find Jesus in the wall, in the most unlikely place in the most unbelievable circumstance. And in the interior of that cold, dark, unyielding place Jesus whispers, “Peace be with you.”

No matter what my situation, I have the assurance that if Jesus walked through walls, I can, too. Besides, I have to follow him. I have nowhere else to turn. And neither do you.


What is your wall today? What is the impossible situation that has been stopping you in your tracks and turning you back? Ask the Lord Jesus to meet you there—right in the middle of it. And then walk hand-in-hand with him through that wall to the other side.

Mighty One, nothing is impossible with you. No situation is beyond your help, your counsel, or your strength. I choose to fix my eyes upon you this day, rather than my obstacles.

Joni Eareckson Tada