Conquering Spiritual Containment
Conquering Spiritual Containment: Moving From Limitation to Expansion
Have you ever felt like your life was fenced in? Perhaps you feel smaller than you know you were meant to be, or as if there is an invisible ceiling holding back your potential. This feeling is what we call spiritual containment. While we often blame our location, resources, or circumstances for our limitations, the truth is that the most significant fences are the ones we build within ourselves.
The Battle Between Two Kingdoms: We are currently in an age-old kingdom battle between light and darkness. The Bible tells us we have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s dear son, but while our spirits are born again, our minds often lag behind. Isaiah prophesied that of the "increase of God's kingdom, there shall be no end". Because God’s kingdom is always expanding, you will often feel a divine pressure to grow. However, the enemy seeks to fence you in and limit you through distractions, offenses, and bitterness.
The Weight of Your Words: The primary tool used to build these fences is the power of the tongue. As Proverbs 18:21 states: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit". The Message Bible puts it even more bluntly: "Words kill. Words give life. They’re either poison or the fruit you choose".
Every word spoken over you or by you can act as a brick to build or a bulldozer to destroy. Often, negative words or labels spoken over us in childhood—especially by authority figures like parents or teachers—act like "open apps" running in the background of our lives, draining our energy and holding us back from our true calling.
Breaking the Label: The Story of Jabez In 1 Chronicles 4:9-10, we find the story of a man named Jabez. His mother named him Jabez because she "bore him in pain," literally meaning "Source of My Suffering". Imagine introducing yourself that way every day: "Hi, I'm 'The One Who Causes Pain'". This label was his identity, yet the scripture says Jabez was "more honorable than his brothers" because he refused to let that label define his destiny.
He prayed a daring, five-part prayer that changed his life:
1. "Oh, that You would bless me indeed": He asked for the blessing that makes one rich and adds no sorrow, providing the divine favor and material provision needed to be a blessing to others.
2. "Enlarge my territory": This was a cry for capacity. Jabez wanted his life to be bigger and more expansive for the sake of the Kingdom.
3. "That Your hand would be with me": He recognized that he couldn't do it alone and needed God’s divine power and authority to lead the way.
4. "That You would keep me from evil": He sought protection from the traps of the enemy, knowing that character and integrity outlive accusations.
5. "That I may not cause pain": Essentially, he asked God to help him not be a "Jabez"—to break the cycle of his name and become someone who brings life instead of suffering.
Closing the Apps Through Forgiveness: To move into this wide-open life, we must deal with the wounds of the past. Forgiveness is the key to closing the "background apps" of your life. Many of us carry baggage from our parents, but we must realize that most parents simply "did the best they could with what they had". When you refuse to forgive, you actually risk repeating the same history you hated. Forgiveness isn't condoning the pain; it is releasing it to God, the righteous judge, so you can be free to grow.
A Call to Spacious Living: The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians with a powerful invitation that remains true for us today:
"Dear, dear Corinthians, I can’t tell you how much I long for you to enter this wide-open, spacious life. We didn’t fence you in. The smallness you feel comes from within you. Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way" (2 Corinthians 6:11-13, MSG).
Growth never happens by default; it only happens by design. If you want to see expansion in 2026, you cannot simply "hope" for it; you must have a plan to "grow for it". God loves you exactly as you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay contained.
Just as God changed Jacob (the deceiver) to Israel (a prince) and Simon (a hollow reed) to Peter (a rock), He is ready to change your name and identity today. It is time to surrender your control, throw down your old limitations, and press into the expansive destiny God has for you.
Have you ever felt like your life was fenced in? Perhaps you feel smaller than you know you were meant to be, or as if there is an invisible ceiling holding back your potential. This feeling is what we call spiritual containment. While we often blame our location, resources, or circumstances for our limitations, the truth is that the most significant fences are the ones we build within ourselves.
The Battle Between Two Kingdoms: We are currently in an age-old kingdom battle between light and darkness. The Bible tells us we have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s dear son, but while our spirits are born again, our minds often lag behind. Isaiah prophesied that of the "increase of God's kingdom, there shall be no end". Because God’s kingdom is always expanding, you will often feel a divine pressure to grow. However, the enemy seeks to fence you in and limit you through distractions, offenses, and bitterness.
The Weight of Your Words: The primary tool used to build these fences is the power of the tongue. As Proverbs 18:21 states: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit". The Message Bible puts it even more bluntly: "Words kill. Words give life. They’re either poison or the fruit you choose".
Every word spoken over you or by you can act as a brick to build or a bulldozer to destroy. Often, negative words or labels spoken over us in childhood—especially by authority figures like parents or teachers—act like "open apps" running in the background of our lives, draining our energy and holding us back from our true calling.
Breaking the Label: The Story of Jabez In 1 Chronicles 4:9-10, we find the story of a man named Jabez. His mother named him Jabez because she "bore him in pain," literally meaning "Source of My Suffering". Imagine introducing yourself that way every day: "Hi, I'm 'The One Who Causes Pain'". This label was his identity, yet the scripture says Jabez was "more honorable than his brothers" because he refused to let that label define his destiny.
He prayed a daring, five-part prayer that changed his life:
1. "Oh, that You would bless me indeed": He asked for the blessing that makes one rich and adds no sorrow, providing the divine favor and material provision needed to be a blessing to others.
2. "Enlarge my territory": This was a cry for capacity. Jabez wanted his life to be bigger and more expansive for the sake of the Kingdom.
3. "That Your hand would be with me": He recognized that he couldn't do it alone and needed God’s divine power and authority to lead the way.
4. "That You would keep me from evil": He sought protection from the traps of the enemy, knowing that character and integrity outlive accusations.
5. "That I may not cause pain": Essentially, he asked God to help him not be a "Jabez"—to break the cycle of his name and become someone who brings life instead of suffering.
Closing the Apps Through Forgiveness: To move into this wide-open life, we must deal with the wounds of the past. Forgiveness is the key to closing the "background apps" of your life. Many of us carry baggage from our parents, but we must realize that most parents simply "did the best they could with what they had". When you refuse to forgive, you actually risk repeating the same history you hated. Forgiveness isn't condoning the pain; it is releasing it to God, the righteous judge, so you can be free to grow.
A Call to Spacious Living: The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians with a powerful invitation that remains true for us today:
"Dear, dear Corinthians, I can’t tell you how much I long for you to enter this wide-open, spacious life. We didn’t fence you in. The smallness you feel comes from within you. Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way" (2 Corinthians 6:11-13, MSG).
Growth never happens by default; it only happens by design. If you want to see expansion in 2026, you cannot simply "hope" for it; you must have a plan to "grow for it". God loves you exactly as you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay contained.
Just as God changed Jacob (the deceiver) to Israel (a prince) and Simon (a hollow reed) to Peter (a rock), He is ready to change your name and identity today. It is time to surrender your control, throw down your old limitations, and press into the expansive destiny God has for you.
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