The Ripple Effect

Keith and I were out at the pond one afternoon throwing stones into the water and watching the rings rippling away from where the stone hit.  I started to ponder about those rings and how they could symbolize the effect of sin on people’s lives.  When a person sins, it doesn’t just always affect that one person.  The effects of that sin radiates out to the people closest to us.

            I met a man today who shared some of his testimony with me.  It was very moving and touched my heart.  Here was a man, who as a little boy, grew up with people closest to him sinning.  The pain of that rippled out to him, causing him to grow up into a hardened, angry, bitter man.  In his hardness and anger, I’m sure that ripple effect of pain and of his sin rippled out around those closest to him.  He had a good heart inside of him but pain had hardened him and pain rippled out on and on.

            Satan just loves that don’t you know?  This ripple effect, I know is his plan, a great way to affect a lot of people into doing what he wants them to do.

            But the good news is, our God is stronger than the enemy, and he has a ripple effect plan also.  Jesus love eventually got to this man and changed him into a whole different person.  I didn’t see a hardened man in front of me.  I saw a man who had been touched by Jesus and he was overwhelmed by the love and the changes that were taking place in him.  Praise the Lord!  Our Lord is a mighty conqueror and will defeat the enemy if we so choose to let Him.

            Jesus died on the cross so this could be possible.  If we ask Him to forgive our sins and come into our heart, He will begin to smooth the surface of our souls and remove the rocks of sin that sunk down deep in our hearts.

            The bible says in Ezekiel 36:26, “ I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you;  I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”  I didn’t see a heart of stone in this man; he had a brand new heart of flesh.

            If the ripple effect of sin is touching you, I encourage you to have a talk with Jesus.  Let the ripple effect stop now and allow the calming effect of grace to take over. The ripples of grace are so much nicer to live with!

…where sin increased, grace increased all the more.

Romans 5:20-21