The Biggest Barrier to Breakthrough

What is keeping you from experiencing breakthrough in your walk with God, in your marriage, in your family, in your workplace, and in your relationships? The biggest barrier to breakthrough is not your circumstances, your past, or even Satan himself. The greatest obstacle is much closer to home. It is your own heart.

Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” The condition of your heart determines the direction of your life. A hard heart is the barrier that prevents you from walking in the will and plan of God.

The Line of a Hardened Heart
In nearly every conversation about relational struggles, I often draw a simple picture. I sketch a line and say, “Whatever you do, don’t cross this line.”

That line represents the hardness of heart. When a relationship breaks down, someone has already crossed it. Their heart has hardened. From that moment on, progress becomes nearly impossible. A hardened heart is like a wall with a double lock. Unless that heart is broken and softened, no one is going anywhere.

Many times, people pray desperately for God to change the other person. They plead, “God, move. God, fix them. God, bring them back.” But here is the danger. While waiting on God to move in someone else, you can harden your own heart. By the time you seek help, it is often at a nine-out-of-ten crisis point. And the truth is simple. When both hearts are hard, reconciliation is nearly impossible. But when two hearts are humble, God can move powerfully.

Why Do We Harden Our Hearts?
Why does this happen? Why do we so easily close our hearts? Scripture warns us: “Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers put me to the test, though they had seen my work” (Psalm 95:8-9).

Here are five reasons we harden our hearts:
1.Trauma – “I’m hurt, so I must protect myself.” Pain convinces us to close off.

2.Continuous disappointment – “I can’t trust you anymore.” Repeated letdowns cause the heart to shut down.

3.Unforgiveness – “I won’t forgive you.” If those words come from your mouth, your heart has already hardened.

4.Shame – “God can’t forgive me.” Believing your sin is beyond the reach of Christ’s blood closes your heart to grace.

5.Unbelief – “God can’t fix this.” Doubting His power or timing makes the heart grow cold.

The Wilderness Lesson
Israel gives us a vivid example of a hardened heart. In Exodus 17, God had already delivered them from slavery in Egypt. They witnessed the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, manna from heaven, quail in the desert, and water from a rock. Day after day, God proved His power and presence.

Yet, when they faced new challenges, they grumbled and complained. They accused Moses of leading them the wrong way and doubted whether God was even with them. Scripture says they tested the Lord by asking, “Is the Lord among us or not?” (Exodus 17:7).

Despite seeing miracle after miracle, their analysis led them to distrust God. They relied only on their own reasoning rather than faith. We do the same thing when we fixate on what people did or did not do and ignore what God has promised. When we push God out of the equation, we set ourselves on the path of ruin.

The Consequence of a Hardened Heart
John Stott once described the progression of a hardened heart:
●Hardness of heart leads to darkness of mind.

●Darkness of mind leads to deadness of soul.

●Deadness of soul falls under the judgment of God.

●Finally, it results in a reckless, destructive life.

Psalm 95:11 records God’s response to Israel: “Therefore I swore in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest.”

The most important truth here is this: when you harden your heart, you forfeit the peace of God.

You can sing songs, attend church, and sit through sermons, but inside you are empty. Worship feels flat, sermons feel irrelevant, and even small inconveniences like the coffee being cold or the air conditioning being too strong become excuses for discontent. But the real issue is not out there. It is in here. It is your own heart.

What Do You Do If Your Heart Is Hard?
So what should you do if you recognize a hardened heart within yourself? The answer is the same as when you first came to Christ. You bring Him your heart again.

Psalm 51:10 gives us the prayer: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”

You cannot soften your own heart. Only God can. But you must be willing to surrender it to Him.

The greatest barrier to breakthrough in your life is not your spouse, your boss, your parents, your children, or even the enemy. The barrier is your own hardened heart.

If you hear His voice today, do not harden your heart. Bring it to Him again. Pray for Him to create in you a clean heart. When your heart is soft and humble before Him, the peace of God will flood your life, and breakthrough will come.



This blog is based on the message shared by Senior Pastor Dr. Roger Patterson at our CityRise West U Baptist campus on Sunday, Aug. 3, 2025. Check out the full message below!