encouragement

Preparing For Passion Week

christian, easter, encouragement, lifestyle

Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

John 12:1-8 ESV

This Sunday is Palm Sunday. The day that Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem less than a week before His crucifixion. I was going to focus this blog around that part of scripture, but I did that last year, and after reading the full chapter that story is in, I could not help but be drawn to the passage just before it.

Just 6 days before the start of this beautiful week we know as Passion week, there was a woman who you may remember from her previous cameo in the Bible. Her name was Mary, the sister of Martha. The same woman who left her sister to clean the house and serve the guests while she sat at the feet of Jesus, listening intently to all that He had to share. If you recall, after Martha’s aggravated blow up, Jesus said that Mary was the one who chose what is better. She chose Jesus.

And as you read the story at the top of this blog, you will see her heart has not changed. As she was given the opportunity to sit with Christ again, she not only gave Him her attention, but her most expensive ointment as well. If you have ever bought perfume or cologne, I am sure you are aware of the prices. They are not cheap, and if you ever had to use it all on someones FEET of all things, you would feel some pain in your heart, or at least I would. But such was not the case for Mary. She willingly poured out her rich ointment and cleansed the feet of Jesus. Wow. What a beautiful picture of humility. Why did she do this? Well, I can assure you it wasn’t something she did for just anyone. It’s because she knew who Jesus was. Just like she put Him above all things when He came to her home before, she did not hesitate to do it again. And just like last time, Jesus did not hesitate to defend her as she was criticized by others.

Far too often, we get caught up in what the world tells us our attention needs to be on. Overwhelming ourselves with keeping this perfect life, job, gpa, relationship, etc. when that is not at all what Jesus tells us to make our priority. Instead, through the actions of Mary, we see how He longs simply for our humble hearts. For a hunger to serve and seek Him first, regardless of what is going on in our lives.

The other day, I mentioned to someone at church that I have to “prepare for passion week” and they asked “how do you prepare?”. And I am not going to lie, I didn’t exactly know how I was to answer that. Last year, I remember doing devotions and stuff that got my heart so excited as Easter came closer and closer. But this year was different. I honestly didn’t realize Palm Sunday was this Sunday until a few days ago. With college and work, the time seemed to have flown by and I realize that it is a little late to start a 30 day devotional before Easter.

So on my drive back home I thought about what I can do now. How in the world was I going to cram in enough Bible studies and sermons to make me as excited as last year? I didn’t quite figure that one out, but as I read this passage I realized how bad it was that I only prepared when there was a special occasion like Easter. It was as if Jesus only mattered when His birthday or death day was coming near. My heart was crushed, but at the same time, filled with joy and gratitude.

It was crushed because of the way I neglected the Holy Spirit who lived in my heart everyday, yet filled as I realized I get the blessing of God’s presence in every second of my life. What better way to come to Jesus as a humble servant, resembling Mary, than to serve others, dedicate time to growing with God, and striving to be a little more Christ-like every day. (again, this is why it is critical to learn about WHO Jesus actually is. You can’t be like someone you don’t know.)

I may not have the time to finish a 30 day devotional before Easter, but I most certainly have time to spend with God and to act in love and humility as I encounter hundreds of people within the next two weeks or so.

Something I have come to notice lately, and I am sure you can tell by my recent blogs, is that humility and joy are not always easy decisions to make, but they are biblical and necessary. So as you “prepare” for passion week, or shall I say for eternity, because our hearts should be in a constant pursuit towards the Lord, I hope you can be encouraged to realize this is not a competition of who has a greater fire in their soul as Easter comes near, rather, how we as the body of Christ can live for what He died for.

Something I found quite mesmerizing was how Mary never said anything to Martha when she told Jesus to discipline her. And when Judas criticized her for using the rich ointment on Jesus’ feet, she again let the Lord speak in her place. How amazing. When we put God first, ignoring the judgement of the world, He will defend us.

So as you seek a humble heart, don’t let that just be towards God, but towards all whom may have good or bad things to say about you. And as you spend this Sunday singing “Hosanna! Hosanna in the Highest”, truly aim to live that out. We get the privilege of having God reside in us. Don’t wait to praise, serve, and love Him. He’s already made a home in your heart.

Discipline > Motivation

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

“This Moses did; according to all that the Lord commanded him, so he did.”

Exodus 40:16

If I got a dollar every time I heard someone say “I just lost motivation”…oh boy, I would be rich. Whether it is a sport, hobby, project, job, or lifestyle, thousands upon thousands of people quit everyday because of a lack of motivation to finish what they started. And sadly, far too often, we see this in the lives of Christians all over the world. Day after day, people give up on reading their Bible, praying, going to church, or trying to acquire a Christ-like character. And honestly, for a very long time, I was one of those quitters.

I would try to live this “Christian Lifestyle” so that I could say how great it was to live for Jesus and how good I am because I did it so perfectly. My motivation was not to please God out of love, but to prove to others that I was in fact a great Christian with a great life and I hoped God would see my reputation and be overjoyed by that. However, every…single…time…I failed. I would do it for a little bit, feel on fire for Jesus, post about it on social media, see that no one really cared, face a struggle in life, lose the fire, become numb , not know how to get it back, then eventually give up. This was a constant cycle I found myself going through every few months.

However at the beginning of this year, I wanted change. True transformation that not only wiped my heart clean of pride, but then put on as much pride-resistant spray as I could, that being, a nice thick layer of humility that absorbed deep into the core of my heart. I wanted to know what it was like to live a life where the seasons I encountered did not effect my faith. If you have heard me tell my story, you know the past 2 years or so insanely impacted my life as I set out to focus strictly on the Lord, giving all my symptoms of loneliness and fear of failure to God. But that does not mean it was an easy two years. As I did that, I experienced so many days, and months, where I wanted to give up as I saw no fruit in my life. In fact, I did sometimes. I stopped reading my Bible. Praying went from daily to weekly. And my belief that I would never experience God’s presence again was very high. I lost motivation so many times. And as a result, I stopped living the way God tells us brings the most life.

But then of course there were times where everything felt great again. The fire seemed to be rekindled. I would find that motivation. Every few months, something good like me getting the chance to preach at youth group, or church camp would happen, or I would be encouraged by those around me. This is what reset the cycle. It’s what would make me remember why I set out to focus on the Lord in the first place. But as I said, it was a cycle, or season if that’s better fitting.

Now I am not depreciating the impact each season left on me. Every time, I would grow, or learn something new. And as I look back, although I always failed at staying disciplined, I left a little stronger. And thankfully, God brought me this phrase of “discipline over motivation” before the most recent cycle went downhill.

I honestly forgot where I heard this, or got the idea of this phrase, but I feel like it is too good to not share as I have recently been seeing it’s value in my life and those around me.

I chose to share the verse from Exodus 40 because it perfectly captures the kind of obedience we ought to have as servants of the Lord. I encourage you to read the full chapter, but in case you don’t have the time, or attention, I’ll give you some of the juicy points I was able to pull from it as I read it during my quiet time last week.

Exodus 40 is about God giving Moses the commands to build the Temple in which the Jews would eventually worship in and where the presence of God would be. This was still during their time of wondering in the desert. The beginning of this chapter is not the most interesting story one could read, but it is important. God basically gave Moses the Lego Instructions book for the Temple. Except, what is so amazing about this, is that it was audible. Imagine building a Lego set but doing it completely off your memory. As a master builder myself, “impossible”, I would think. But the fact that Moses did it, just shows us that if we make our hearts so sensitive to the Holy Spirit, we too can understand and remember what exactly God is trying to tell us.

Moving on to the next part of the chapter, we come to the verse highlighted at the beginning of this blog. Moses did it. He obeyed the Lord and the rest of the section is dedicated to explaining Moses’ construction piece by piece. And as you read it, you will see “as the Lord had commanded Moses”, seven times. After every step, scripture clarifies Moses did EXACTLY what God commanded. Now I don’t know what Moses was feeling or how long this took Him to build, but I can only imagine that he was not exploding with joy and excitement every second of this project. But nonetheless, he obeyed.

Moses chose discipline over motivation.

As life throws good, bad, and ugly days at us, it is inevitable that we experience moments of exhaustion, pain, or boredom. But I would like to encourage you with this.

Making a daily schedule for myself where I included praying, devotionals, and reading the Bible was the best decision ever. I once heard someone say “You will not always stay on track. Sometimes you’re going to miss a day, just don’t miss two.” And wow. I totally forgot who told me that but it has been the kick in the butt that I needed as I realized I forgot to spend time with God the day before. Now I’m not going to lie. There were times this year where I missed a LOT more than 2 days. But this desire to choose discipline over motivation forced me to get back on track.

If I could give you one phrase that offers so much relief, it is this: God knows we are humans, so make sure you know that too.

We will NEVER be perfect. You need to humble yourself enough to realize that, because until you do, you won’t realize how much you need Jesus. With that humility, comes the understanding of where true life comes from. In the process of obedience and discipline, I have realized the clear difference that the days I spend with God have against the days I spend without Him.

And honestly, because of the way my brain decides to function, I experience a LOT of days where I sadly have no motivation. But the story in Exodus could not reflect those days any better. At the very end of the chapter, AFTER Moses did what God commanded Him to, there is a section with the title “The Glory of The Lord”. It talks about how God’s presence comes upon the temple (the fruit of Moses’ obedience…mmm so cool!!) and remained there day and night. Ahh CHILLS.

What a beautiful picture portrayed here. God saw Moses follow His commands step by step and He did not hesitate to reveal His Glory to Him as a result of His discipline. I honestly never realized how often this happens in my life until I read this. Recently there have been many days of numbness or exhaustion, but EVERY…SINGLE…TIME that I read my Bible anyways and prayed even though I was mumbling over my words because I was so exhausted, God revealed the most perfect little feelings of peace, joy, hope, and love to me. It may not have come until the end of the day or even a few days later, but it always came.

God remained faithful. Sometimes it was through songs, overhearing other people, reading scripture, or even just re-reading some old prayers I wrote a long time ago. I found reason to CHOOSE joy and hope regardless of how bad my day was going.

One of the main things that inspired this blog was what I heard from two girls in the high school group I lead at church.

As we went around with prayer requests, they asked for the fire they feel for Jesus to never die down. What a beautiful prayer to have. But from experience and the testimonies of others, I knew that prayer would never come true. The fire, or excitement, we have to read our Bibles, or passionately live for Jesus every second of our day will not always be as lit as we’d hope. Certain experiences can certainly make it grow, but scripture tells us our faith will experience trials (James 1:2-4). But it also tells us to let those trials strengthen us, not break us. So what I felt was necessary to remind them and any of you who have this same prayer, is to pray for strength and an ear for what the Lord is telling us to do. Because ultimately, what we feel is so easily effected by this world, but the commands of God are not.

With that being said, I hope you understand the importance of choosing discipline over motivation. Remembering that your feelings should not determine your faith. I heard this song the other day by Maverick City Worship (lol when am I not listening to them) called “Million Little Miracles”. It was honestly so sweet to hear. I was walking to my car to go to work as I heard it and even though I heard it before, it hit different because I was so tired and annoyed but it convicted me so much to stop and realize there are far more blessings than things to be bitter about.

So, as you go about your day, and continue on this journey with God, I pray you never forget the little miracles He makes happen. I pray you realize that all good things require a choice to be made. So I pray you choose discipline, joy, hope, love, compassion, and peace. I pray you gain a sensitive heart and ear towards the Lord so that you can clearly follow where He leads. And I pray you never forget how madly God loves you and desires to grow with you, but will not intrude on your life if you don’t let Him in.

Seek His heart and remember that you can never experience true life if you are away from the One who created it.

Imitators By Nature – Prioritizing THE Creator

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

 1Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Earlier this semester I attended a chapel service at my school. I was very hungry and did not really want to go because I didn’t think I could focus, but our God is too good. What He revealed through the man who was speaking was incredible and definitely filled me in a way food never could. With that, I felt it was only necessary to share this insight with all of you.

The speaker focused on imitation. How we as humans are imitators by nature. We are designed to follow. Yes, we can lead certain things, and some have a greater gift in that than others, nevertheless, we all were crafted to be fulfilled by following the Lord. This idea is remarkable.

So often, we see people claim “that is just how I am” as they act in a certain way. Although subject to change, many of our habits or ways of reacting are results of us naturally imitating our parents, guardians, or other important people who were involved in our development. It is incredible that we are so susceptible to imitating those around us, that even if we wish to be nothing like our parents or guardians, we either still pick up those traits and characteristics, or we build our life around dodging them.

How crazy is it that a simple natural response in a human can shape their lives in a variety of ways. But do you know what is even crazier? Our God knew exactly how He designed us, and knowing that we desire power because of sin, He does not feed into that, instead, He leads us back to the root of our blueprint. He calls us to imitate. Imitate whom? Jesus.

Imitation in itself is not a sin. In fact, it is the only way to become a genuine ambassador for Christ. However, when one directs their focus on someone other than Jesus, it leads to idolatry.

Let’s be real for a quick second: It is EXTREMELY easy to want to imitate others. Whether it be for fame, for success, or simply for productivity. YouTube currently is filled with loads of “productive daily routines”, “what to do to become a pro athlete”, “What to focus on when seeking success”, and so on. Social media is flooded with influencers and celebrities seeking people willing to follow them. Shaping the infamous lives to reflect those who are. But this is all wrong.

I believe in this generation, we have become so desperate for leadership from people who have already found success so that we do not have to make the same mistakes many others have in the past. Honestly, dodging mistakes and things bound to fail doesn’t sound so bad, right? Frankly, it isn’t. To clear things up, there is nothing necessarily wrong with watching these “how to” videos, or making a daily routine similar to what you saw on a popular YouTube channel. In fact, I’d be a hypocrite to say I don’t do that. My YouTube history coming into this year is a very, very, VERY long list of “productive 6am routines” or “How to balance school, work, and God”.

There is nothing wrong with letting influencers inspire you. But let that be all they do. Inspiration and encouragement is what we should be giving to others, and it is very helpful when we receive it ourselves. However, the moment you allow these digital creators, athletic influencers, or business leaders become more influential than THE Creator, we lose sight of our purpose.

We are called to glorify God in ALL that we do. When pursuing this, the best “How to” resource for learning what we should and should not implement in our lives is none other than the Bible. Breathed and inspired by the Lord Himself.

Answered Prayers – Hope for the Rough Answers

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Galatians 6:9

This past week, I finally got a job. I did not tell anyone besides my family that I was pursuing one. And by one, I mean exactly ONE. What job? Chipotle.

I know, I know. If you ever heard me talk about my history of working there in high school, you have heard me say “I promise that you will never see me in the food industry again.” But here I am. Two days down. Roughly 17 hours charted, and two nights of coming back to my dorm at nearly 1 am.

I have applied to jobs this semester prior to getting this one. Mainly just to see if there was any chance someone would be super flexible with their hours due to my chaotic schedule, but if they got back to me, between anxiety in getting rejected after telling them my availability and knowing I will have to quit in a little over a month and a half, I never responded back to them. I know that probably doesn’t look good to employers but it’s what happened.

This was the routine until about a month ago. It wasn’t until then that I started praying circles. I have Morningside church to thank for this amazing book I started reading called circle maker by Mark Batterson. Here I learned the value of asking God for EVERYTHING, big or small, and most of all, God-glorifying. I am planning on writing a blog once I finish the book to talk about the power of praying circles and explaining exactly what that means, but until then, bare with me.

So there I was one day, realizing I am extremely low on money and the prices of everything is going crazy high for some reason. I knew I vowed not to get a job so that I could focus on school and this blog, but I believe that season of unemployment was coming to its end, as I no longer found peace in the place I was at.

Before I even looked at indeed again, I wrote a list of what I was going to do with the money I earned as well as reminders that regardless of how much I make, it should never go before God. I did this because if you know me, I have a terrible addiction to shopping. It’s like the cute clothes just jumps off the shelf, into a bag, and my money disappears. And before I know it, my wallet is on life-support as it tries to fathom only having a few dollars left in it. (haha. I thought that was kinda funny so I hope someone relates to this addiction too.)

After I made this list, I prayed for God to lead me to the job that would allow me to glorify Him as well as have the flexibility I need for school and blogging. And as I took a quick scroll through indeed, there it was. “Chipotle – team member”. Normally I wouldn’t hesitate to scroll by it, but this time it stuck out like a sore thumb. I stared at the job listing and remembered the high flexibility, opportunity to transfer to the one back home during the summer, and the experience I already had which would make it easy to start racking in cash. Although my body cried for me to keep scrolling as it recalled the terrible pain it was in after standing for so many hours and spilling hot beans on myself all the time, my heart longed for no other job.

Long story short, I applied. Three weeks passed and no word. During those weeks, I prayed and prayed and prayed. Each time, drawing a circle from my knees to my toes as I knelt before God. Ironically, a few of the jobs I applied for before I started praying, got back to me. They kept emailing me, offering to pay more too, but I declined because there was no peace in them. All I remember saying was “thank you God, but I don’t believe that is the job you have for me”.

Then one day, I decided to take that circle a little further. I took my car all the way to the Chipotle building I was praying to get a job at, and I circled it. I am not gonna lie, it was a little awkward, but I believe God sees our dedication in our prayers.

The very next day, I received a call from them and got the job.

CRAZY right?! I know. Our God is too good. But this blog is not meant to be a happily ever after story. I apologize for the length, but we are just getting started.

So fast forward to today. Friday, March 18th, 2022. Last night was rough. I didn’t leave Chipotle until 12:30am. My back was aching, my stomach was growling, and my clothes was covered in sour cream, guacamole, mop water, and sweet tea. It was not my cutest look, but it was what my poor car had to take me back to my dorm in. Although I was tired, for some miraculous reason I was happy.

In the last two days of working, I have gotten countless compliments on my smile and bubbly personality (and my cute necklace from Israel 😉 but that’s besides the point). Mind you, the last one I received was not by a customer who walked in right when my shift started, but by the guy in the kitchen who saw me struggling to wash the lemonade container at 12:15am. For some reason that one made me realize how good our God is.

I have worked harder and longer in these two days than any other shift I did in high school, yet my joy was too abundant to be overcome by my pain and exhaustion. And that was not just the feeling I had on the inside, but God let me realize that others could see it in the slight smile I had as I carried away the 3 huge trash bags that could fit 5 of me inside or picked up the half eaten bowls that some…people whom God loves, oh so very much…left outside on the tables 3 hours ago.

On my ride home and the few moments of thinking I did before I knocked out in my dorm, I realized that by me closing the store, I alleviated this pain from the older woman who taught me how to do all of this. I was able to make the guy in the kitchen question what made me remain filled with joy after a hard day. And I was able to experience the humility a servant of the Lord should have. I prayed for this job. I had peace in none other than this one.

Even though I am aching from the inside out, reminding myself “this is where God led me. This is what I prayed for”, gave me the energy to push on with far less aggravation than I used to have at this job in high school. Rather than seeking the things I could make reasonable complaints about, God revealed to me the ways I can glorify Him in every hour of my shift. After all, isn’t that what I prayed for? A God-glorifying job?

So as I sit here in the Starbucks lobby, an hour and a half before I begin my next shift, I write to you with a hope to bring nothing but encouragement and advice. I pray that you pray the dangerous prayers. The ones where you say “yes, God” before you know exactly where He is going to lead you. I pray you dig deep to find the joy in the circumstance you are in. If you are living in an answered prayer like I am, but it is not as easy as you thought, I pray you let God fill you with strength as you fill others with joy. Follow where His peace leads. For if you have God with you, you have all you need.

As you begin to live in the way God desires, you will realize just how good our God is and how nothing, not even a container of hot pinto beans spilling all over you, can ruin the joy He longs to fill you with. Answered prayers are not always going to be a breeze, but they will always be God centered and in that truth, I pray you can find the hope to trust the process of His answer to your cry. My dear friend seeking God’s plan for your life, do not grow weary, believe me when I say there is always more joy to find when you are led by the One who is Joy Himself.

“I believe, but help my unbelief!” – Giving Your Doubt To God

christian, encouragement, lifestyle

There once was a father who had faith…but also fear. Sound familiar? It is so easy to say that we have faith in things when God’s grace is so evident in our lives. But what happens when that hope in His grace begins to turn into something you easily KNOW but struggle to BELIEVE?

I’d love to share the story behind the quote in the title.

In the book of Mark, Jesus enters a land where there is great pain. A father’s heart breaks as his faith in the healing of his son grows less and less. His son struggled with a demonic spirit. He had seizures that would inflict harm towards himself and he was unable to speak. This man already sought help from people with a seemingly great reputation, the disciples, but even they could not bring healing to the son. But when the father met Jesus, he pleaded for help again.

How beautiful is this mans faith? After years of his son being possessed by this unclean spirit, witnessing countless failed attempts to bring healing, including that by the men who walked alongside Jesus, he never gave up. He knew the authority of Christ and chose to let his faith in that truth be stronger than his doubt in this circumstance. May we strive to have a faith-filled and hopeful heart as persistent as this father.

After showing his son to Jesus, the man said, “But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” My first thought of the father’s request was that he did not understand the power of Christ, but as I read on, I realize this statement of “if you can” meant something totally different.

As we look back at how He first addressed Jesus, he calls Him “teacher”, acknowledging His authority. He also seeks help from His closest followers, whom we know were no where near perfect, showing His faith in Jesus’ teachings. He then brings his burdens to Jesus’ feet as he cries out to him even after the failure of His disciples. This “if you can” was most certainly not a rejection of the power of Christ, rather a plea for the blessing and grace from the God who freed the Jews from Egypt, fulfilled the promise to Abraham and Sarah, and entered this world in flesh and blood to bring eternal hope to all.

Yet what I find most heart warming about this whole thing is the response Jesus gives as this man lays all he has in front of Him. It is not shaming. It is not confusing. It is not dismissive. He says straight to the man, “if you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Instead of rebuking Him for his “if you can” statement, he simply asks him to believe, if he can.

CHILLS. How crazy is it to be reminded of the true power of our God? This world throws trials and burdens at us all day long, yet Jesus never fails to calm us with His comforting, sovereign presence. Right? Well, it is true that Jesus has that power, but it is not always that easy to put our full trust in it. How the man replies to Him, I feel, perfectly reveals the struggle of being human and a Christian. Considering there is so much about God that we will never fully understand with our limited minds, it is so easy for doubt to seep through the cracks of our faith.

So here this father was, with a heart so very heavy for his son, crying out to Christ in tears…”I believe, but help my unbelief!”

Wow. I don’t know about you, but this small plea hit me like a canon in my chest. It reminded me of the times I was confused about whether my doubt or fear in certain situations meant my faith was not good enough. Or the times where I convinced myself to just numb the pain so that I did not feel any uncertainties. It was as if my thoughts and feelings were finally put into words that formed a sentence perfectly portraying them.

I believe in Jesus as the Christ and His power, but in times of great trials, I need help to overcome the temptation of fear. And clearly from this passage, alongside many others in the Bible, Jesus offers his comforting presence and gracious blessings with just one catch…you must choose to believe. Whether or not your heart experiences the overwhelming peace of God is your decision. Just as joy is a choice, a gift in which requires genuine desire and discipline, hope is a choice as well. And with all of these, humility must be at the source. The humility that this man showed Jesus as he lamented so beautifully, is the only way in which one can empty their heart enough so there is room for it to be filled with all God seeks to give.

https://thegracestreetblog.wordpress.com/2022/02/18/come-as-you-are-for-the-non-life-long-believers/
Read About Coming To God With A Humble Heart, Honoring Your Pain In Life As Well As God’s Authority !!

I love this quote from Spurgeon, “While men have no faith, they are unconscious of their unbelief; but, as soon as they get a little faith, then they begin to be conscious of the greatness of their unbelief.”

Ignorance can be bliss for only so long. I would argue that the joy of experiencing the growth in a relationship with God is far greater than any joy that bliss could bring. The man in this story showed us that it is possible to have faith and doubt. I am sure many of you can relate very closely with him on this, as can I. But what he also showed us, is that we should not remain in that position of little faith. We should seek to overcome our worries and hopelessness with the presence of God in our hearts.

His son was probably very cherished and loved by him. It must have been hard to bring awareness of the issue at hand. But just like he came to Christ with an honest and humble heart, seeking nothing but His compassion, for he knew Jesus was all things good, we must do the same.

We all have situations in our life that we rather not bring into the light. Maybe you numb the pain with hopelessness. Or maybe you hide your doubts with a “faith on fire” mask. Whatever it is that you do, however it is that you are, none of us are perfect. God promises that His actions are for our good and His glory. But we will not experience this without being completely honest and humble with the Lord. Bring those things that you desperately cling to and are losing hope in to the foot of the Cross.

Let God be your provider, Jehovah Jireh. Your healer, Jehovah Rapha. The One whom your KNOW you can come to with faith as small as a mustard seed and BELIEVE He will do the impossible.

It is not always easy to expose our unbelief. Sometimes you will open up to people with your worries or doubts and they will respond with shaming you, but allow me to remind and encourage you that our God will never do that. He longs for a genuine relationship with you. His love for you does not grow any more or any less depending on what you do. But the extent of how much joy, peace, hope, love, comfort, and strength you actually feel and rest assured in, is completely based on how much you allow God to move in you. Like this man laid His greatest possession, his son, at the feet of Jesus and experienced a miracle He had some unbelief in, we should follow this course of action.

So as you go about your day, week, months, and years, I pray you learn to come to God as you are. Even if you have unbelief, let the belief you do have keep you steady towards God so that He may help you overcome your burdens. There is so much power in prayer, not because of the amount of our faith, but because of the one whom we are speaking to.

At the end of this story, the disciples ask Jesus why they were unable to cast out the demon from the son. He replied to them saying, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

Let the father’s humility, Jesus’ responses, and the wisdom-seeking heart of the disciples lead your response as you face the various trials of life.