Worrying Hinders The Flow Of Grace

Here is an illustration that the Lord gave me to help you understand what I am saying. Imagine that there are many pipes coming down from heaven. These are flexible pipes and they are all ministering God’s manifold grace into every area of your life.

There is a grace for healing flowing into your life, a grace for prosperity, a grace for your marriage and so on.

Once you are a believer, you are righteous by faith and you have “access by faith into this grace in which we stand.” (Romans 5:2) When it comes to the benefits and blessings of God, all of us, whether we are pastors or ushers, enjoy the same inheritance. We are all on equal footing on the ground of grace.

When Jesus died on the cross, there was an earthquake and God’s heart burst open, and streams of His love, grace, mercy and blessings just flowed out. And since God is eternal, these streams are eternal. They have been flowing ever since Jesus died. They are flowing all the time.

But what happens is that when we worry, it is as if we are grabbing hold of those flexible pipes, and hindering the flow of God’s grace into those areas of our lives. The more we worry, the tighter we grip the pipe and the more it becomes choked. Is His grace still being supplied from heaven? Yes, but the pipe is clogged with our worries and cares. Conversely, in the areas that we are not worried about, His grace flows freely, producing thirtyfold, sixtyfold and finally hundredfold results.

So when you are ruffled, troubled, worried and fearful about a particular area of your life, say your finances, you are giving the devil access into that area. The devil has no power to just stop the grace that is flowing into your finances. He cannot touch that pipe. God will not allow it. The only one who can touch it is you.

Lying Symptoms To Get You Troubled

Since the devil knows that he has no power over you, what he will do is give you lying symptoms to make you worry. Take your health, for example. The devil cannot just put a disease on you. He has no right to do that to a child of God because Jesus has borne your sins on the cross. He has taken your punishment and borne your diseases and pains. By His stripes you were healed (Isaiah 53:4–5). You also cannot be cursed with any curse because Christ has redeemed you from the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:13).

All the devil can do is give you lying symptoms and hope that you will be troubled. Once you are troubled and worried about those symptoms, and start thinking about them all the time, you begin to hinder the flow of God’s grace into your health.

Again, God is still supplying the grace. He is faithful. It is your worrying that is clogging up the pipe.

Bring It To The Lord In Prayer

So refuse to worry. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. When there is something you are concerned about, bring it to the Lord in prayer:

Philippians 4:6–7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Don’t be anxious. There is no use praying worried prayers. Just tell the Lord about the problem and cast your cares on Him, knowing that He cares for you (1 Peter 5:7). Let it go. Then thank the Lord that He has heard you and is doing something about the problem. If you do this and refuse to be troubled, “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Remember: The devil cannot handle a peaceful Christian.

The Father Wants Us Carefree

When my daughter, Jessica, started Primary 1, she would miss her mother and call home during recess. One day, she could not get through to her mother and became very anxious. It was a traumatic experience for her.

When she came home that day, I spoke to her about what had happened. I was very concerned about her. It hurt me to see her so troubled. She kept saying, “I don’t want to go to school. It is like a nightmare. I want to be with Mama.” I tried to reason with her, but it was like she was just not listening to me.

I finally left her with her mother and went to my room. I was frustrated that my daughter was worrying at such a young age. I was even feeling a little angry towards her. So I sat down and told the Lord, “Lord, I don’t want her to be troubled. She is so young. And I just feel bad about being angry with her. I am confused, Lord.”

The Lord said to me, “Son, why are you so concerned about her?”

I said, “Well, I just don’t want her to worry.”

“Is that the real reason?”

“Yes.”

There was silence for a while. Then, He asked, “What is the reason you don’t want her to worry?”

I thought about it for a while and then like a flash I saw the real reason: I love my Jessica so much that I want her to be carefree! I want her to enjoy life. I don’t want her, at such a young age, to be thinking, “What if tomorrow I call and Mama is not there? What if… What if…” I don’t want her to worry because I love her so much.

It gives me a big thrill to hear her break out in a belly laugh when she is watching her favourite TV program, or when Wendy and I are kissing her belly on the bed. It makes us happy to hear her laugh. But it makes us sad to see her cry or even worry at that tender age. So it is not that I don’t want her to worry because I just don’t want her to worry, or because I am a pastor. I don’t want her to worry because I love her very much and I want her to be happy.

When I realized that, the Lord said, “Son, now you know how I feel towards you. I am not telling you not to worry for the sake of not worrying. I am telling you not to worry because I love you so much and I want to see you happy. I want you to enjoy life and, most of all, enjoy My love in your life.”

Your Father wants you living life carefree, enjoying His love and knowing that He watches over you.

Beloved, I hope that you will not forget what the Lord said to me. Your Father wants you living life carefree, enjoying His love and knowing that He watches over you. He really loves you. And perfect love — knowing this perfect love — will cast out every fear in your life (1 John 4:18).

Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to your stature? (Matthew 6:27) So let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid, and the grace of God will flow freely in your life, causing you to see His blessings at their richest!

By: Joseph Prince
Global Grace News http://www.globalgracenews.org