Grace Blockers: Releasing the Flow of God's Mercy and Grace

By James T. Cloyd Ma-Counseling

In Grace Blockers: Releasing the Flow of God’s Mercy and Grace, the reader will learn about what ‘Grace Blockers’ are, how they develop, and what needs to happen to successfully remove them and allow the reader to enjoy the journey to full Christian maturity and effective service in God’s Kingdom.
The reader will gain insights into such matters as:
Is there a spiritual heart separate and distinct from our internal blood pump?
What is ‘the mind,’ who controls it, and what does it have to do with our behaviors?
What is ‘prevenient grace,’ and how does it work?
Should Christians attempt to convert those who declare themselves as atheists? Agnostics?
What is ‘Faith-Based’ counseling, and does it differ from Christian counseling?
Can an unsaved person be helped through Faith-Based counseling?
What grace blockers stand between man and God, and interfere with his desire that all be saved?
What is the relationship between Christian maturity and the fruit of the Holy Spirit?
What grace blockers can prevent a believer from reaching their full potential in Christ?
And much, much more. Enjoy the read, and may the Holy Spirit of God make it a true blessing to you!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Apr 29, 2019
• ISBN: 9781973640516

James T. Cloyd Ma-Counseling

Rev. James Cloyd holds an MA in counselling from Liberty University and brings to the task of writing this book over 40 years of pastoral and counseling experience. Now retired, he resides in Fredericksburg, Virginia with his wife of 50 years, Deborah; and currently serves as a counselor, and online pastor at Salem Fields Community Church (Nazarene).

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Copyright © 2019 James T. Cloyd, Ma-Counseling.

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ISBN: 978-1-9736-4052-3 (sc)

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WestBow Press rev. date: 05/11/2021

Scripture taken from the American Standard Version of the Bible.

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible, BSB Copyright ©2016 by Bible

Hub Used by Permission. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

The Common English Bible Study Bible. Nashville: The Common English Bible, 2011.

Holy Bible: The Contemporary English Version. 1995. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

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andHCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible: International Standard Version®.

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RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission.

The Jubilee Bible (from the Scriptures of the Reformation) edited

by Russell M. Stendal Copyright © 2000, 2001, 2010

King James Version. Public Domain

Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright ©

1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission

of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET©)

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registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982

by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New Life Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked NRSV are taken from the New Revised

Standard Version of the Bible, Copyright 1989, by the Division of Christian

Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the

United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Orthodox Jewish Bible fourth edition, OJB. Copyright 2002, 2003,

2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International. All rights reserved.

The New Testament in Modern English b J.B Phillips copyright

© 1960, 1972 J. B. Phillips. Administered by The Archbishops’

Council of the Church of England. Used by Permission.

Scripture quotations marked RSV are taken from the Revised Standard Version of

the Bible, copyright 1946, 1952, 1971 by the Division of Christian Education of the

National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission.

Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, 21st Century King James Version (KJ21®),

Copyright © 1994, Deuel Enterprises, Inc., Gary, SD 57237, and used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (TLB) are taken from The Living Bible

copyright © 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers,

Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Worldwide English New Testament. Willington, Derby, England:

SOON Educational Publications. © 1969, 1971, 1996, 1998.

Contents

Introduction

Section 1 Prevenient Grace

Chapter 1 Prevenient Grace and the Spiritually Unresponsive

Chapter 2 Spiritual Cardiomyopathy

Chapter 3 In Search of the Mind

Chapter 4 Spiritual Dullness of the Mind

Section 2 Saving Grace

Chapter 5 Blockages to Saving Grace

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 6 Spiritual Agnosia

Chapter 7 A Weakened Ability to Trust

Chapter 8 Guilt, Fear, and Self-Condemnation

Section 3 Maturing Grace

Chapter 9 Grace Blockers to Love

Chapter 10 Where’s the Joy?

Chapter 11 Peace

Chapter 12 Long Suffering (Patience)

Chapter 13 Kindness

Chapter 14 Goodness

Chapter 15 Faithfulness

Chapter 16 Gentleness

Chapter 17 Self-Control

Chapter Endnotes

Bibliography

Dedication

This book is humbly dedicated to my Heavenly Father; to Jesus, my forever-friend; and to the Holy Spirit, my ever-present guide; who put this message in my heart and dramatically changed my life; and gave me the privilege to share it with you.

Acknowledgements

I wish to express my appreciation to the following individuals who helped me tremendously in authoring this book:

To my loving wife of 52 years and my best friend for a lifetime, Deborah, for her constant encouragement, tenacity, patience, and belief in me. I could not have done this without her.

To the following individuals who worked tirelessly to help me do what I have never done before:

Editorial Team – Lindy Cloyd, Deborah Cloyd, Rebecca Ferris, Tamie Wagner, and Andrew Wagner

Front Cover Art – Sarah B Wagner

Tech Advisor - Benjamin James Cloyd

Pastors Buddy and Gaye Marston, Pastor Kelly Padgett, and the many, many others who supported me with prayer, encouragement, and donations to help cover the costs of publication.

Bible Translations

ASV – American Standard Version. Nd. Public Domain.

BLB – The Holy Bible, Berean Literal Bible. Pittsburgh: Bible Hub, © 2016. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

CEB – Common English Bible. Nashville: Common English Bible, © 2011.

CEV – Contemporary English Version. New York: American Bible Society. © 1996.

DRA – Douay-Rheims, American Edition. Public Domain. 1899.

ESV – English Standard Version. Wheaton: Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. © 2016.

EXB – Expanded Bible. Nashville. Thomas Nelson Inc, © 2011. All rights reserved.

HCSB – Holman Christian Standard Bible. Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers. © 999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009. All rights reserved.

ISV – International Standard Version. La Mirada, CA: ISV Foundation; Davidson Press, LLC. © 1995-2014. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY.

JUB – Jubilee Bible. Abbotsville, WI: Life Sentence Publishing, Inc. © 2000, 2001, 2010.

KJV – King James Version. Public Domain.

MSG – The Message. Eugene H. Peterson. Carol Stream, IL: NavPress of Tyndale House Publishers, © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002.

NET Bible – New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. © 1996-2006. http://netbible.com. All rights reserved.

NIV – New International Version - THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®. Colorado Spring: Biblica, Inc ®. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011. All rights reserved worldwide.

NKJV – New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson. © 1982. All rights reserved.

NLV – Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale House Foundation, Tyndale House Publishers Inc; © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015. All rights reserved.

NRSV – New Revised Standard Version Bible. Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. © 1989. All rights reserved.

PHILLIPS – J. B. Phillips. J.B Phillips New Testament. Published by J. B. Phillips. © 1960, 1972.

RSV – Revised Standard Version of the Bible. The Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. © 1946, 1952, and 1971. All rights reserved.

21KJV – Revised Standard Version of the Bible. The Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. © 1946, 1952, and 1971. All rights reserved.

TLB – The Living Bible. Tyndale House Foundation. Carol Stream, Il: Tyndale House Publishers Inc. © 1971. All rights reserved.

WE – Worldwide English New Testament. Willington, Derby, England: SOON Educational Publications. © 1969, 1971, 1996, 1998.

(All Scriptures quoted from the New International Version of the Bible, unless otherwise indicated)

Introduction

There are some words in the English language that get verbally tossed about until, over time, they lose their clarity of meaning. Some even develop second and third meanings according to their widespread usage. Grace is one such word. In the English language, it can mean anything from a prayer said before a meal, to the way a person (particularly a female) carries herself in public. It can mean time permitted to complete an overdue commitment, as well as the act of mercy a judicial officer might show to one convicted of a crime.

One final observation about this noun of distinction is that, over the centuries, it has become socially acceptable to place this identifier upon a newborn baby (almost exclusively female) and recorded on their birth certificate, christening documents, and baptismal records. Unfortunately, not every little girl so named has lived up to the expectations put upon them by that moniker. There’s a story I heard some time ago. It was about a young girl named G. Wilma Smith. For many years she refused to tell anyone what the ‘G’ in her name stood for. Finally, in the hours before her death, she told a pastor friend the blunt tale of it.

She weighed in at over eleven pounds at birth and continued to develop that rather ‘big-boned’ figure. Despite her birth weight, her parents followed through with their decision to name her after both of her grandmothers. Thus, she became known as Grace Wilma Smith. When it became time for Grace to enter school, she was a chubby, clumsy, but tender-hearted little girl. Children being children, many of her classmates were less than kind in addressing what they considered to be her identifying flaws. They made up names and tease lines to frequently throw out in her direction as she passed by; insulting quips like pig face Grace; or chubby wubby Grace. And lines like last place Grace; and, Make lots of space because here comes fatty Grace. The names and the ditties only got more hurtful in the upper grades.

Upon graduation from high school, Miss Smith, a very bright student with a nearly perfect grade point average, applied to and was accepted at a prestigious college some 2700 miles from the hometown where she grew up. During registration at the college, she requested and received permission to sign up under the name G. Wilma Smith. The autograph became her official signature on all documents. For the rest of her life, she never again used nor permitted others to use her first name. Grace Wilma Smith lived only in a very lonely, profoundly wounded place in her heart.

She never really seemed to fit in at the college and, two years after becoming a student there, Miss Smith fell into a deep depression. She had concluded that nobody in the work-a-day world would ever want to hire such a heavy, clumsy woman as herself to be a secretary, nurse, or teacher – the occupations for which she had a passion. So, quitting college, never again to return, Wilma isolated herself in a small apartment for months. The few friends she allowed to be close were genuinely concerned about her.

Finally, coming up out of her depressed state, Wilma sported a close-cut hairdo and a quite distinctive style of dress. She began attending a school where she could train to become a tractor-trailer driver. It was a world Miss Smith believed would be a better fit for the likes of her. After completing her training, she began driving big rigs over the road (interstate). She dressed like a truck driver, swore like a truck driver, smoked like a truck driver, and, when not driving, she even drank as a truck driver might do. Forgotten in her life was any expectation to be sweet little Grace. When asked what the G in her name stood for by other drivers, she would simple replied, what’s the N in your name for, Nosey? That usually got her a laugh, but occasionally embroiled her in a bar fight. Not many of her opponents ever wanted to try that twice. Despite her deep admiration for her beautiful, gracious, tender, and loving Grandmother Grace, ‘Smitty,’ as the other truckers called her, was as tough as overcooked liver, rough in speech and action, and blunt in her treatment of others. She desperately desired to grow up to be like Grandmother Grace. But, a world which rejected her, hurt her deeply, and always seemed to bring out the worst in her, seemed to leave her as cold, stubborn, and irritable as Grandma Wilma, whose name she chose to be known by even to herself (though she never particularly liked the woman.)

After driving big rigs for 24 years, Smitty suffered a massive heart attack, was rushed to a nearby hospital and died several hours later. The only person she would allow in to see her was the minister who would pass on her story. Arresting a promise from him that he would give the eulogy at her funeral, Wilma tearfully entrusted to him the content of her heart and pleaded with him to let the world know the truth about Grace Wilma Smith.

The pastor comforted her by telling her of a place where Grace could finally find the peace and joy she sought for a lifetime. He introduced her to someone. His name was ‘grace:’ his spirit was ‘grace:’ his power was ‘grace.’ This clergyman told her that this man loved her; and that if she put her trust in him, he would lead her to a place – an incredibly beautiful place – where she could enjoy forever just being Grace.

In the eulogy, that preacher reported from her grave’s edge that she passed from this world with an aura of awesome peace that night. He concluded with this remark:

Many may come to this final resting place in search of G. Wilma Smith, or perhaps in search of ‘Smitty,’ but they will not find her. Before passing, she asked me to invite you all to return to this very spot in the spring. If you return, you will be blessed to finally meet Grace W. Smith – to know her as she was in her heart.

Many did journey back to that cemetery once the temperatures rose, and the snow had melted. When they arrived at the gravesite, they saw a simple bronze metal plaque at the head of her grave that read, Grace W Smith, and below that were given only the years of her birth and death. But rising from the surface of the ground just behind that bronze marker was a beautiful dark marble headstone. It read:

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When my friend finished telling me the story, I asked him if it was real or an allegory. He replied that he could not say for sure about Grace Wilma Smith, but he did know, without question or doubt, that grace – God’s grace − was indeed real. I found that to be a very touching and inspiring narrative. I’ve been reminded of it many times in my life. It is part of what makes me want to share the contents of this book with all who are willing to read it. It is the true story of ‘grace’ – God’s grace, waiting to take us to heaven if we will only believe it, receive it, and be conceived by it (see John 3:3-8;16-17.).

Section I

PREVENIENT GRACE

One

PREVENIENT GRACE AND THE

SPIRITUALLY UNRESPONSIVE

There are three types of grace discussed in this book. The first is called ‘prevenient grace,’ the second, ‘saving grace,’ and the third, ‘maturing grace.’ A discussion of the second and third types takes place in later sections of this book. But the idea of prevenient grace needs to be where any study of individual spirituality begins. A blockage of this form of God’s compassionate mercy can have unthinkable eternal consequences.

‘Prevenient grace’ is, very simply, God’s attempt to reach out to an individual soul that is controlled by what is known as ‘free will’ gone awry and is lost in sin. Free will is the God-given right of each person to decide their spiritual destiny and to make choices and take actions consistent with that decision. When God created man, he did so to enjoy the fellowship that such a being would be able to have with him. Said another way, God created man to love him and to be loved by him. Robots, puppets, and inanimate objects cannot independently show affection. In the animal kingdom, that ability does appear, but in minimal forms and expressions. God wanted a relationship with a created being who could fellowship with him, interact with him, and love him at a level far superior to those in the animal kingdom. But love is a choice, and for man to choose to love God unreservedly, he had to be equally free to choose not to love him at all. That is the simple reality of creation. Those who reject that God created the earth and man, live outside the sphere of holy love. They cannot fellowship with the Divine; and, thus, are among those classified as being ‘spiritually unresponsive.’

Some affirm the concept that this planet, this solar system, this, and all universes, were created by God. They will acknowledge that God created them as well. Sadly, what they refuse to do is, with love and a heart full of gratitude, yield their lives and wills to the authority of God, thus being rewarded by a living relationship with him. It is not that most of these individuals do not know that they are sinners and lost. It is that they don’t take matters of spirituality and its consequences very seriously. There is a wide range of responses to this reality, but it all boils down to the same diagnostic evaluation of their state of grace. These, too, are among those rightly classified as spiritually unresponsive.

That’s where ‘prevenient’ grace comes in. Many people alive on earth today have no idea that God is seeking them out through the Holy Spirit to save them and reconcile them to himself. They are clueless concerning the depth of his love for them, and how far he has gone to make it possible for them to reestablish a soul-saving reconnection with him. The New Testament passage in John 3:16 and 17 lays it out quite clearly.

For God so loved the world, that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

And again, quoting from the Scripture:

Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t that shepherd leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me. I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (Luke 15:4–7)

Will L. Thompson, of Smith’s Ferry, Pennsylvania, probably expresses the idea of God’s mission to bring all his spiritually lost children home as poignantly as anyone in his hymn, Softly and Tenderly:

Time is now fleeting; the moments are passing,

Passing for you and for me.

Shadows are gathering, death’s night is coming,

Coming for you and me.

Come home, come home.

Ye who are weary, come home.

Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling.

Calling, O sinner, come home! ¹

This ‘pre-faith’ type of grace is a clear pathway ‘home’ to God. But though he has unambiguously set that path before them, not-yet enlivened souls are, at once, lost in a fog, and blinded by the brilliant allurements set before them. Through the work of another being of supernatural origin, phony visuals are flashed before their eyes, and whispers of false promises intrigue their ears. All this in hopes of keeping them from seeing that path or hearing the voice of God calling out to them. It is not that they cannot find the way. It is that they don’t even know such a path exists, though it is right at their feet. All who live at this level are spiritually in the dark. Some have never even picked up a Bible, never mind having read or understood it. The closest many who subsist here have come to attending a church is passing one on the way to participate in one of any number of frivolous passions. Mistaking these inner base drives as a path out of their present misery, they imprudently interpret them as a direct freeway to personal enlightenment. The longer they are on this ‘expressway’ to ruin, the more momentum they gain. Before they realize it, they find themselves driven by their chauffeur – their sinful nature – at such a high rate of speed that they cannot see the danger signs on either side of them, and are