Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” -Mark 9:24
The Christian life is rooted in faith. Actually, it's really all about faith. You have to believe without having the physical proof. Most, if not all, of us would say that we get that. We believe that Jesus is the son of God. We believe that He was sent to the world to save us. We believe that we will go to heaven because we have made Him Lord and Savior of our lives. We have the principles of faith pretty much secured. The problem comes in when we have to believe God in our personal lives; when we have to believe Him to turn our situations around, fix our marriages, or save our loved ones. It's often easier to believe God for someone else than it is to believe Him for ourselves. The truth is that we know God can do it, but if we are honest there are times that we struggle to believe that He will do it. We have seen Him do things for others, but will He do it for us? Will He repair the breaches in our marriages? Will He save our unsaved loved ones? Will He mend our broken hearts? Will He use us to minister the gospel? Will He prosper our lives?
The truth is struggling with unbelief is not new. In Mark 9, a desperate father brings his son to the disciples for healing. The son is deaf and mute. He has seizures and for lack of a better word, "fits". This father has to be at his wit's end. There are not many pains greater than seeing your child suffer and knowing there is nothing you can do to fix it. So, the father brings the son to the disciples. He knows that they have walked with Jesus, and I am sure he is thinking that they can help. Sadly, they could not. Can you imagine the doubt that gripped him? Certainly, he began to think things were hopeless at this point. I know he did because in his conversation with Jesus he says "if you can do anything". This is not the phrase of someone with complete confidence and trust. Jesus says these powerful to him: if you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. I love this! The father doesn't respond with a deep or spiritual answer. He doesn't say, "Of course, Master. I totally believe you". Quite the contrary, the father is completely honest. He says, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief". I think he was saying, "Lord, I believe you. I know who you are and what you are capable of doing, but I have been through so much I am struggling. Help me to believe again". I think that Jesus loves it when we are completely honest with Him even if our answers are not "churchy" or pretty.
Do you know what Jesus did? He healed the man's son. He helped that father to believe again. I believe that He wants to do the same for you. Maybe there was a time that you stood on God's word in an area, but now you are struggling to believe that it is going to happen for you. Perhaps you have tried many things and been to many people -- well meaning people, maybe even people who walked with God like the disciples did. Can I ask you to follow the pattern of this father and take your concern directly to the father? Then tell him honestly that you are struggling to believe. He will help you to believe again! Recall every promise He spoke over your marriage -- faithfulness, unity, prosperity, covenant that reflects Him -- and believe again! Your spouse can be who God called them to be -- believe again! Your union can be a model for others to follow -- believe again! Call to mind His promises over your children and believe again! Think about His promises for your life and believe again!
No comments:
Post a Comment