Tonight’s thought didn’t come during my usual quiet time on the porch.
It came while I was working on my next book.

As I wrote, my mind drifted back to last night’s Porch Believers Bible Study with Solomon’s Porch Church in Texas.

We were studying Nehemiah chapter 4.10

“…there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.” (Nehemiah 4:10, KJV)

The people wanted to rebuild.
The desire was there.
The work had begun.
But there was a problem.

The debris from what had been torn down was still everywhere.
As I thought about that tonight, I couldn’t help but see a picture of my own life.

Sometimes we want God to build something new in us…
…while we’re still holding on to the debris of the old.
Old habits.
Old hurts.
Old pride.
Old fears.

Things we’ve carried for years that make it difficult to move forward.

The truth is, I can’t clean up my own heart.
I can confess.
I can repent.
I can surrender.

But only God can truly make me new.
Only He can remove what sin has left behind and begin rebuilding my life into something that brings Him glory.

Maybe that’s why we grow weary sometimes.
We’ve been trying to carry debris that was never ours to carry alone.

Tonight, I’m thankful that our God isn’t just a Builder.
He’s also the One who restores.
He specializes in taking broken places and making them beautiful again.

So here’s the question that stayed with me after Bible study:
What debris have I been holding onto that I need to surrender to God?
Maybe before He builds the next chapter of our lives…
He first wants to clear away what’s been standing in the way.

Until the rain falls again…
Grace and peace,
A Porch Believer