How many times have you prayed to God and asked Him for something you did not receive? Perhaps it has caused you to be disappointed in God? Maybe you feel it is hopeless to pray. Or maybe you’ve given up? Well, please don’t give up, because you’re not alone. Someone back in Jesus’ time on earth asked Jesus to help him have more faith. Notice verse 24 in the Scriptures below.
Mark 9:17-29 “17 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
19 He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
20 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?
29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.”
This shows us it is God’s will to heal us, because that’s what Jesus did for the man who asked.
And in John 5:30 Jesus also said “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” So, Jesus did “the will of the Father!"
We all struggle with doubt, because we want to understand how God thinks, and still believe and trust Him, too. And we need to believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in His Word. But there’s so much more. So much, that we really can’t take it all in.
There are some things we should just leave in God’s hands, trusting Him because He knows what’s best, so we can rest our weary little minds and enjoy the peace of not worrying about it. I re-discovered a wonderful Scripture today. It’s actually two verses. I am emphasizing verse six:
Proverbs 3:5-6 “5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Verse six tells us to acknowledge God. The word ‘acknowledge’ means admit something, show awareness of something, show appreciation of something, recognize somebody or something legally or thank somebody officially.
So, we should recognize God by admitting we can’t do anything without His help; and show Him that we appreciate Him legally and officially! WOW.
Perhaps it stuck out to me today because I was reading it in a different version.
“5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart;do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek his will in all you do,and he will show you which path to take.” NLT
That says a lot, doesn’t it? Hmmm, maybe if our leaders in government would ‘legally’ and ‘officially’ acknowledge our Lord, He would tell them which path to take, like He used to do for our forefathers who publicly declared our nation to be one nation under God!
We don’t know what’s best for us at this moment in time, because we don’t know what tomorrow is bringing to us.
And where we are right now may be best for us, compared to where we could be. If we want His blessings (which we all pray for), then we should also seek His will so we’ll choose the right path.
God told Jeremiah “This is what the Lord says:“Don’t let the wise boast in their wisdom,or the powerful boast in their power,or the rich boast in their riches.
24 But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth,and that I delight in these things. I, the Lord, have spoken!” Jeremiah 9:23-24
Did you notice that God delights in demonstrating unfailing love, justice & righteousness? THANK YOU LORD!
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