Jamin Bradley

Few meats are more challenging to smoke than a brisket because this giant cut of meat has an unpredictable phase known as the stall. This usually happens once the meat hits 160 degrees (though it can happen earlier or later) and lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours. It’s a pain to navigate, especially when your family is hungry or you’re trying to cook barbecue for a competition.

During the stall, hot air tries to move into the brisket while cold air tries to move out, more or less neutralizing the meat’s ability to rise in an internal temperature for a long time. But once this process has finished, the meat will magically get back on track, consistently making its way up to the 204 degrees you were waiting for.

The Kingdom of Heaven is kind of like that. When you start trying to bring about God’s desires for your neighborhood and its neighbors, you may quickly see the temperature rise. But after keeping with it for some time, you may slam into the stall where everything seems to stop.

Remain faithful. Keep pushing forward. It may appear like nothing is happening, but the stall is a part of the cook. Maybe it’ll take 30 days. Maybe it’ll take 4 years. But as we stay faithful to God, eventually, the cold will leak out, and the heat will take over.