Aināt That A VHIT
By Bro. Von C. Howard
Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā At 46 years old, I am learning that one of the hardest realities to accept in life is that there are some places my own strength simply cannot take me. No matter how educated I become, how hard I work, how many relationships I build, or how much experience I gain, there eventually comes a moment where my personal reach stops. And in those moments, I continue to hear the words from a recent sermon by my Senior Pastor, Dr. Marcus D. Davidson, New Mount Olive Baptist Church, preached from 2 Corinthians 9:6-9: where my ceiling stops, God keeps going.
As a Black man raised with a strong spiritual foundation, I understand what it means to trust God. I understand prayer. I understand service. I understand sacrifice, perseverance, and faith. But I am also learning that having faith does not mean I never struggle. It does not mean I always have the answers. Sometimes, even those of us who love God deeply wrestle quietly within ourselves.
I am learning that life has a way of stretching you beyond what you think you can carry.
There are days when I feel mentally exhausted from constantly pouring into others while trying to refill myself at the same time. There are moments when I carry the weight of being a leader of my family and servant to my community while still trying to navigate my own personal emotions and uncertainties. Many Black men understand this reality all too well. We are often taught to remain strong no matter how heavy life becomes. People celebrate our resilience but do not always recognize the silent battles attached to that strength.
And if I am honest, sometimes my walk with God feels challenging.
Not because I do not believe. Not because I do not love Him. But because life tests faith in real ways.
I am learning that there are seasons where I reach my own emotional, spiritual, financial, or mental ceiling. Seasons where I can see the vision clearly but cannot fully grasp how I am supposed to get there. Seasons where I wonder if I have enough strength, enough wisdom, enough patience, or enough endurance to continue pushing forward.
But that is where God continues to show me that His ability is not confined to my limitations.
The scripture reminds me that God is able to make all grace abound toward us so that we have what we need to continue doing good work. That means while I am focused on my insufficiencies, God is still operating in abundance. While I am worried about closed doors, God is already creating pathways beyond what I can currently see. While I am measuring my ceiling, God is moving beyond it.
I am learning that some blessings cannot be reached through personal ambition alone. Some breakthroughs only happen through surrender. Some healing only comes when we stop pretending to have it all together and allow God to meet us honestly in our vulnerable places.
And maybe that is what many of us need to remember right now.
Our ceiling is not Godās ceiling.
Our temporary struggles are not permanent endings. Our moments of weakness do not cancel Godās purpose for our lives. Even when our faith feels stretched, even when life feels uncertain, even when we feel like we have reached our limit, God still has the ability to continue beyond every boundary standing in front of us.
Where my strength ends, His grace continues.
Where my ceiling stops, God keeps going.
