Application Of God's Word: Mark 9:24

 
Verse: Mark 9:24
Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears,
“Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

If you are struggling to believe that God can take care of your need, it is because you don't know Him as He wants you to. Go to Him and allow Him to convince you of His ability to meet every need you will ever face.

The attitude of trust and confidence that the Bible calls belief or faith (Hebrews 11:1,6) is not something we can obtain without help. Faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8,9). No matter how much faith we have, we never reach the point of being self-sufficient. Faith is not stored away like money in the bank. Growing in faith is a constant process of daily renewing our trust in Jesus.

Application:

Faith does not come from ignorance. Faith is based on what we know.

Before we will trust others with something precious to us, we first try to find out if they are trustworthy. This father was asking that he might come to know God in such a dimension that he could trust Him to cure his son.

His son had been possessed by an evil spirit since early childhood. The father did not know Jesus well, but he had heard and seen enough to convince him that if there was any hope for his son, it lay with Jesus. In desperation he cried out to Jesus for help. Jesus’ response was to heal his son. The desperate father had correctly gone to Jesus with his problem even though he was struggling with his faith.

When you are struggling to believe, that is not the time to avoid Christ or to be ashamed of your struggle. You will never increase your faith by not going to Jesus! Rather, Jesus wants to help you with your belief. He can not only meet your need, but He will also give you faith to trust Him to provide for you.

Jesus Wants You To Know...

"Come to Me and let Me shelter you under My wings. You are completely safe with Me. Put aside your fears and worries. Remember, I can use crazy days to do wonderful things in your life. You may have a chance to do something for Me that wouldn’t have happened on an ordinary day. So instead of complaining about an out-of-control day, say yes to what I am doing in your life."

"I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings." - Psalm 61:4 - "Jesus Calling for Kids" by Sarah Young

How To Maintain The Peace Of God In Difficult Times

Whenever we go through difficult times, peace often gives way to anxiety, stress and fear. It happens to the best of us. But the apostle Paul was able to sleep through a shipwreck. What is the secret to maintaining the peace of God regardless of what we are going through?

𝗣𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗵𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗲

In 1993, Tropical Storm Brett was threatening my country Trinidad and Tobago. Trinidad is located just below the hurricane belt, so we are not accustomed to hurricanes. Many of us were afraid, worried whether the storm would hit and whether we were even prepared to deal with the aftermath. Some of us barely slept that night.

But there were other Trinidadians who left their homes to party in the streets of Port-of-Spain (our capital city). They were not in the least bit worried about any hurricane, “God is a Trini”. Brett veered north at the last minute and missed Trinidad.

Were these unsaved, ungodly people privy to some secret to peace that the rest of us Christians didn’t have? How could they be so calm knowing that a hurricane might hit and destroy everything they worked so hard for all their lives?

As I thought about it, I realized the answer is no, they do not have some secret to peace. What they have is not peace at all, it is denial. Their assurance was based on the assumption that no hurricane was coming. Based on history, every time a hurricane threatened to come near to Trinidad, it would eventually veer north and miss us. Their comfort was based on their belief that no hurricane was going to hit.

𝗣𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀
BUT, if instead of a hurricane, they had received a phone call stating that a hitman was coming to wipe out their families, I can guarantee you that they would not be partying in the street. They would be in a mad panic, scrambling to get the next flight out of the country. They would be terrified.

What they had is the kind of peace that the world gives. Jesus gave us real peace – the kind of peace that could sleep through a storm and not in the least be worried or anxious. What is the secret to that kind of peace? In a world of global terrorism, economic recession, job layoffs, divorce, troubled and troublesome kids; how do you not go insane with worry and depression? What is the secret to having peace when everything is falling apart?

𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. – John 14:27

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 understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:6-9

Turned Tables: Finding Grace in Life’s Disruptions

Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there.
He overturned the tables of the money changers and the
benches of those selling doves.
Matthew 21:12

Convinced I was following God’s call, I had poured myself into ministry - doing everything to build what I believed He had asked of me.

But then burnout hit me.

My heart broke as God asked me to step back, step away and slow down. It felt like He was disrupting everything I thought He had called me to. I couldn't help but wonder why and struggled to understand how He could allow this.

Maybe you’ve felt it, too - that quiet exhaustion that slowly builds as you try to hold everything together. We start with the best intentions, trusting God to lead the way. But somewhere along the journey, we take on more than He ever asked us to carry. The weight of it all presses in, so we push harder, strategize more and keep striving … until suddenly something disrupts our plans.

It feels like everything is unraveling. But what if the disruption isn’t a setback? What if it’s an invitation?

As Holy Week unfolds, Matthew 21:12 says, “Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.”

The people had lost sight of the temple’s true purpose. They’d begun with worship but ended up focused on profit and performance. Jesus’ intervention reminded them that holiness mattered far more than human plans.

As believers today, we are now His temple - His Spirit dwells within us. And sometimes He must overturn the tables in our hearts. When we have resorted to anxious striving, worrying ourselves sick and pressing on when He is calling us to rest, He knows this is hurting us. This was never His intention.

Looking back, I see now that God wasn’t punishing me by asking me to slow down or let go of some of the things I loved. He was purifying me. My identity had become tangled in what I was building for Him instead of simply being with Him. In His love, He overturned my plans to bring me back to Him.

Perhaps God allows some disruptions as an invitation back to dependence on Him. Like the burnout that forced me to pause, all God’s interventions draw us into surrender, reminding us that He, not our efforts, is the true source of strength. Removing what’s unnecessary creates space for what matters.

This Holy Week, may we embrace God’s gentle correction, knowing His most beautiful mercies meet us at the end of ourselves.

Oh, Lord, I confess I often rely on my strength. Thank You for using life’s disruptions to draw me back to You. As I reflect on this Holy Monday, help me surrender my plans and trust You even when life feels overturned. Give me faith to rest in Your love and guidance today and always. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

- Ashley Morgan Jackson
Provided by "Proverbs 31 Ministries"

Jesus Wants You To Know...

“I have made this day for you. Be careful not to complain about anything in it - not your English test, not your frizzy hair, not even the weather - because I am the Creator of this day. Instead, decide to be happy today. Open your eyes, and choose to look for all the blessings I have hidden in this day.”

This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it. – Psalm 118:24

– "Jesus Calling for Kids" by Sarah Young