HOW TO OPEN THE PORTALS TO RECEIVE GRACE

Do you ever feel stuck in your prayer life? In your progress spiritually? 

One of the primary things that keeps me in a “stuck place” is PAIN. What kind of pain? The chronic presence of situations, irritations, and people who are causing me problems. It's the grievous challenges of leadership. It's the stuff that God allows and I just can't understand why.

The apostle Paul had one of those “stuck places”' in his life. He called it his “thorn in the flesh.” 

"Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.  Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me." 2 Corinthians 12:7-8

Can you hear Paul pleading? “God, please remove this situation and its negative impact on my life.”  

No one knows for sure what the thorn was: 

  • A person that the devil was using? 

  • A problem that just wouldn't go away? 

  • An emotional or physical pain that was slowing him down? 

No matter what the thorn actually was, we understand that it was an attack from Satan and that God was allowing it in Paul's life.  And Paul is begging God to make it stop! He is wondering why the pain and problems are allowed to continue. Paul is receiving no clear answer as to how long this thorn is going to remain, but then he discovers something. God gives him an answer. 

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9

The revelation hits Paul! This thorn is not a STOPPER but is actually a DOOR OPENER to receive GRACE! 

If we learn to surrender to God in the midst of our pain, God will release into our lives His sufficient grace, which is the power and capacity to do God's will with joy. Grace is the spiritual strength that is given by God as substance for our soul. Grace is breathed into us and makes us complete, whole, lacking nothing. 

Paul shifts gears and begins to turn his pain into prayer portals that bring grace.

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-10

THE PRAYERS THAT OPEN UP THE FIVE PORTALS OF GRACE

PORTAL 1: WEAKNESSES 

God, I thank you for my weaknesses today! I realize that You chose me not so much for my strengths, but because You knew I would surrender to You in my weaknesses and give You an opportunity to work through my life. So I delight in my weaknesses because:

  • They remind me to depend on You instead of myself

  • They give others hope, because when you use me they can see that God can use anyone.

  • They are an opportunity to receive grace. When I surrender to You here, You give me sufficiency for everything that I need.

  • They help me to see that nothing can stop me when You are for me.

PORTAL 2: INSULTS 

This portal is often the hardest one to find ways for which to be thankful. Please know, praying this prayer is not a substitute for drawing healthy boundaries. It is not an excuse to allow abuse to continue. It doesn't  mean that you should neglect negotiating healthy understanding in your relationships. But even if you have done all of that properly, there can  remain the sting of what people say, do, or fail to do. This is why  insults from others can be a portal to grace.

  • When I forgive my offender and surrender my heart to God, I bring a smile to the face of the Father.

  • When I refuse to retaliate but suffer (as Christ did on the cross), I am choosing to allow Christ-like character to be developed in my life. 

  • When I absorb the insults of others, I play a role in bringing healing to families, to friends, and to the overall body of Christ. 

  • When I choose to adopt the attitude of Jesus in my pain, I open the floodgates of grace to be poured out upon my life. 

PORTAL 3:  HARDSHIPS 

The word in the Greek that Paul uses here describes being “squeezed”. To fit through a narrow passageway, you must  let some things go:

  • Thank You that season of pain  is what You are using to prune away (John 15) all the things that are secondary in my life so that I can focus on that which is Your primary assignment for me.

  • Thank You that this season of struggle is removing from me the relationships or activities that are stealing my joy.

  • Thank You that these hardships are causing me to let go of that which may have become an “idol”' in my life.

  • Thank You that in place of anything else, these struggles are helping me cling to You, God. You are the only one that can bring me through this pain!

PORTAL 4: PERSECUTIONS

Honestly, most of us in the western world do not fully understand the impact of persecution for Christ followers like our fellow believers in other parts of the world. However, it  is on the rise in our culture. God, today I choose to be thankful for persecution because:

  • Being persecuted helps me stay spiritually sharp. I am less likely to slip into a spiritual slumber.

  • Being persecuted creates a hunger in me to know what it really means to follow Jesus. It reminds me, as a pastor, what I should be teaching others.

  • Being persecuted produces a huge eternal reward. Jesus says I should dance around for joy because that reward is so great. (Matthew 6)

  • Being persecuted separates the wheat from the chaff in the church. Those who are not really serious will fade away. The remnant becomes pure and strong. 

PORTAL 5: DIFFICULTIES 

This final portal is the impossibilities that we face. The difficulties.  There are places we call the “miracle zone.” We can become thankful for these as well.  Difficulties:

  • Thank You for these difficulties in my life.  I realize that they requires me to partner with You and not just do things in my own strength

  • I recognize these difficulties can  be the platform upon which You demonstrate Your power and grace in my life.

  • My difficulties provide an opportunity for You to build a message through my life.. As You  provide and make a way, I have a story to tell.

  • God, teach me faith as I learn what it is to stand on Your word and pray when we need to see You work in my life.

My hope is that you can use these prayers to open up the portals of God's sufficient grace for you in every area of your life!

APC Communications