What Paralyzes You? (Part 1)

When I travel around, especially in airports or overseas, I see many people who are paralyzed from various debilitating diseases and it hits me how fortunate and blessed I am to only have a few things wrong with my body that hinder my life experiences at this age. When I see a person who is partially broken or paralyzed I pray a simple prayer for them and myself. First, I apologize to the Lord for my complaining over small pains and problems and I also ask the Lord to bless that particular person with the obvious difficulties. That he or she would be healed both physically, emotionally and spiritually. So often I recognize they do better with their disabilities than I do with my seemingly normal life.

So, the question I would like to pose in this article is “What Paralyzes Our Souls?” and causes us to function less than God designed us for.  Because this topic will cover a number of areas I will need to have multiple parts to cover it adequately.

First, let’s talk about what the term “paralysis”, which is a medical term, and then we will branch off into psychological and emotional areas. Lastly, I will look at the spiritual side of this question.

Our soul is a composite of mind, will and emotions. When one of these elements is broken or damaged it affects the whole. Often our soul scrapes through life in a “crippled state” or paralyzed in an area that causes the rest of our soul to live some measure of a distortion other than what God intended. The plan of God is always for us to become healthier intellectually, emotionally and spiritually yet we often find ourselves trapped in a cycle of endless fights to maintain our lives rather than experiencing real growth.

Medical Definition:

Paralysis is most often caused by damage in the nervous system, especially the spinal cord. Other major causes are stroke, trauma with nerve injury, poliomyelitis, cerebral palsy, peripheral neuropathy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, botulism, spina bifida, multiple sclerosis, and Guillain–Barré syndrome.

The Nervous System has three main functions:   – To collect sensory input from the body and external environment.                                                                                                                – To process and interpret the sensory input.                                                                                                                                                          – To respond appropriately to the sensory input.

Taking the medical concept and branching off into the spiritual, Jesus has an encounter that illustrates that often our physical paralysis is the cause, in some way, through a “Sin Action” by someone, multiple people or ourselves.  The following passage from the Book of Matthew illustrates this point.

Matthews 9:1-8 

Jesus got into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town. Some people brought to Jesus a man who was paralyzed and lying on a mat. When Jesus saw the faith of these people, he said to the paralyzed man, “Be encouraged, young man. Your sins are forgiven.”

Jesus identifies that the problem is not disease or a physical accident but a spiritual and moral one.  How often are we quick to judge what a particular physical problem is wrongly and then suffer terribly by chasing wrong cures?  Jesus, on the other hand, was a man with authority, not because of wearing some rob or special outfit to identify his authority, but because he would get to the problem straight away and then offer a real cure.

The second interesting part of this illustration is the fact that the man with the paralysis was not the one with the faith.  It is the people who brought the man to Jesus who were credited with faith and Jesus rewarded them for it. In my mind, sick people struggle desperately to have faith because the pain hinders their belief. If the church would walk in its calling as being the embodiment of Jesus in our midst we would see more miraculous things happening. The “well” people should carry the burden of the sick in prayer because God loves “teamwork” and people that love others work on their behalf.

Things That Paralyze Us:

First – Keep in mind that we live in a “Broken World” even though this is all we know. The brokenness is a due to humanity choosing to live outside of God’s authority and will. There are consequences to this choice and behavior.

Second – We live in a world that is both “Spiritual & Physical”.  The problem is that we tend to downplay the spiritual side of this partnership and we do so to our own peril.

Third – Because the “Spiritual Side of Life is Unseen” to the natural eye, we “misdiagnosis” the cause of our brokenness, whether physical, emotional or spiritual, and thus our time is spent trying to solve a problem that is not the main problem. Let me clarify that many of our physical and emotional problems and paralysis is natural but we should never just look to natural causes or fixes.

Fourth – When spiritual darkness is involved there is always a “Spirit of Fear” involved because Satan uses fear to “Steal, Kill & Destroy” our faith. We all know the scripture states that without faith it is impossible to please God so if we move in fear it is impossible to generate the faith to move the heart of God to intervene.

Fifth –  Moving in faith requires us to be in “Alignment with the Kingdom of God” and the heart of God. To put it plainly, you can’t move in faith if you don’t practically move in trusting God.  Trust involves relying on God for provision, guidance and direction.  If you don’t trust God with your family, your money or your future, then praying for a “measure” of faith when you are in trouble is almost wasted energy.

Let me close this first article with the advice of the apostle Paul:

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 comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Anxiety cripples our lives in so many ways. It ruins our health and clouds our judgement. Eventually, it paralyzes us so badly that we can’t get out of our own way, even when surrounded by believers who are walking victoriously. Anxiety is a faith killer…….it is a health killer.

Now, most of us know this scripture if we have been believers for any length of time. The problem is that it sounds so easy, but it is anything but easy. Yet, if we don’t address it and overcome it in our lives we are destined to a life that is so contrary to the will of God  that to call ourselves believers makes us look like hypocrites.  My friend, God has called us to be “More Than A Conqueror” but that does not come easy or cheap.

Questions:

Can you identify what areas in your life are paralyzed?  Confession is the start to healing.

Have you talked to a mature believer to team up to pray for healing?  If not, why not?

Part 2 of this series is coming on Thursday.

Pastor Dale