Read: Mark 8:1-10 “Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.’” Mark 8:1b-3 (NIV) Sympathy looks in and says, “I’m sorry.”
Compassion goes in and says, “I’m with you.” Sympathy looks in and says, “I would like to help.” Compassion goes in and says, “I am here to help.” Sympathy says, “I wish I could carry your burden.” Compassion says, “Cast your burden on me.” Sympathy often irritates many words. Compassion helps and hears in quietness and understanding. ~ Author Unknown Jesus had shown His compassion when feeding the five thousand men earlier in Mark 6. Now, more people had gathered to hear Jesus preach in a remote place and from what is written they were there three days listening without food.
Jesus’ words were the food and water to sustain their souls. But now they needed to return home and Jesus thought of their physical needs. Again, He asked His disciples to feed them and again they found bread and fish. After Jesus gave thanks for what God had provided, the food was distributed to the four thousand people and seven basketfuls were left over. A sign of God’s abundance and love! Compassion is a character trait that is present in everyone. However, it is also a trait that sometimes gets forgotten. It is both innate and can be learned and enhanced. It is something you can develop with practice, and it involves two things: intention and action. The intention is simply opening your heart to others; the action is what you do about it. Mother Teresa reminds us, “We cannot always do great things on this earth. We can only do small things with great love.”
Prayer: My loving Father God, you had such compassion on the people who were searching for your love. Have compassion on me and show me love, grace and mercy as I follow you. Amen.
Read: Mark 7:31-37 “[Jesus] looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, ‘Ephphatha!’ (which means ‘Be opened!’) At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.” Mark 7:34-35 (NIV) The poor man who was brought to Jesus lived a very lonely existence. He could not hear a sound, but neither could he communicate with speech except for a grunt or two. To live like this would to be in a cocoon – no hearing or speech! It doesn’t tell us how he communicated with others as there was no official sign language nor whether he was literate and could read or write. He would have depended on the other senses: touch, sight and smell, but even so it would be as if living in an isolation chamber of absolute silence.
Think then of the extreme joy of this man, through the love of his friends who brought him to Jesus and was healed. He probably had no idea where he had been taken nor anything about this man Jesus. But with the touch of Jesus he could hear and speak, his life was truly reborn. He was set free to enter the world of sound and free to hear the voice of his Saviour. He was also free to tell others about Jesus and to also praise Him. It all happened when Jesus uttered the one word: “Ephphatha” (pronounced ‘aff-ar-tha’). It is an Aramaic word which translates to – “Be opened!” With this ‘deep sigh’ from Jesus the man’s life went beyond physical healing; it was an opening up towards a true healing of the soul. This is such a beautiful story of being set free from what bound this man.
To apply it to us, we also are in bondage to the constraints and social norms in our world. Jesus set us free through His death and resurrection to have a true healing of our souls. The freedom Jesus offers is an emancipation from all that keeps us from sharing and being who God wants us to be; living how God wants us to live and knowing that in Jesus we are freed and forgiven from all our wrong doings. ‘Ephphatha’ – be opened to hear and see and feel God’s mercy and love.
Prayer: Merciful God and our loving Saviour Jesus Christ, you have opened my heart and life to all the possibilities you have in store for me. Help me to know that in you I have true freedom. Amen.
Read: Mark 6:30-44 “They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish.” Mark 6:42-43 (NIV) How many of us when preparing a meal for family and friends work out exactly how much each person will eat, to have just enough food for everyone. Leftovers are a sign of abundance. The food from Jesus is always in abundance. Jesus was tired, his cousin John the Baptist had just been beheaded, and he was peopled out. He needed a quiet place to go with His close friends where no one could find Him. The wilderness on a boat could be considered a good place to be alone. But the people were needy and needed Jesus to heal and teach them, for they were hungry for the truth. I know that when someone is hungry in my house, I feed them and provide enough and more to satisfy them. Jesus saw how these people hungered for knowing about the Kingdom of God. Even though He was tired,
He fed them with His words. But then they became physically hungry. What to do? No shops around nor any farms to go gather food, just a boy with five loaves of bread and two fish. Definitely not enough for five thousand men and just as many women and children. But, with God nothing is impossible. The food is blessed, and all eat to their fill and still there is more left over. God is an abundantly generous God. God’s generosity is never just enough. And God doesn’t give leftovers. Our loving Father gave His best – His one and only Son – this is the nature of our God… He always gives His best.
All the multitude had eaten their fill, and our God of abundance didn’t stop there for He multiplied the loaves and fishes to the point that there were also twelve baskets left over! God is not a God of leftovers, but when He provides for His children, there is always enough left over! When God says He will provide for all your needs, just wait for the abundance and more. He loves you so much. God will provide all you need in abundance!
Prayer: Dear God, you provide me with all I need from day to day and more. Help me to be thankful for your generosity and abundance and be willing to also share with those around me. Amen.
Read: Mark 5:24b-34 “[Jesus] said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.’” Mark 5:34 (NIV) For the last 17 years our family has had a pet turtle, Frank. He is the pet of our son who got him when he was eight years old. At the time we didn’t look at the lifespan of a turtle. Anyway, we let Frank out of his turtle tank to wander the house every so often. Usually, he just sits for a while to get his bearings and then takes off on an expedition. If he is not watched and his whereabouts assessed, Frank, in the freedom of the huge house, gets lost (to us). One time I remember we searched and searched to find him before discovering him under a computer table amongst the cords in a pile of fluff.
Freedom can be a scary thing. Children when they are given freedom in a playground, run and run, but you do notice them looking back making sure that there is a secure adult still there watching and caring. In Mark 5 we read a story about a woman in bondage to her illness. She had been suffering from bleeding for twelve years and had tried most things but was not getting better. In Jesus’ time, when a woman was bleeding, she was considered unclean and not permitted out the house or to go to worship in the synagogue, or to touch another person. She was considered contaminated and treated as worthless and unclean. This woman had heard about Jesus and ventured out, probably trying to hide herself among the crowd, or they might turn on her.
Her thought was to just touch Jesus’ clothes, and she would be healed, and this is exactly what happened. There were people all around Jesus, jostling and bumping Him, why would Jesus mention just one person who touched Him? There was a difference between her and all the others around Him. Jesus acknowledged this woman’s need and faith with His blessing of healing. She believed Jesus had the power to heal and it was her faith that healed her. Knowing and believing in Jesus freed this woman from what kept her in bondage. Faith in Jesus brings freedom!
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to you having the faith that you can heal me in body and soul. Touch my life to free me from all the stresses and issues that plague me. Only in you is true freedom. Amen.
Read: Mark 5:22-24, 35-43 “When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to them, ‘Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.’” Mark 5:38-39 (NIV) While we were at St Peter’s Lutheran Church in Loxton, there were major productions held every few years. John Gladigau, a talented script writer, has a production company called ‘Little Town’. Usually, the productions were held around Christmas, hence ‘Little Town’ (of Bethlehem) but for a couple years we had productions over Easter. Many from the town of Loxton, the congregation and surrounds joined in the production team – actors, musicians, or behind-the-scenes. In 2011, ‘Anna’s Hope’ was written and performed.
It was a poignant depiction of the story of Jairus and his encounter with Jesus through his little daughter Anna. In the play the background story was presented with Jesus stirring up the towns that He visited. There were those who believed, those who were skeptical and those who hated Him. Jairus being a synagogue leader was torn between his role as temple official and that of a father, especially when his precious daughter Anna became ill. He tried everything to have his child healed, but then he went against the Jewish teachings and came pleading to Jesus, knowing that Jesus could heal her.
Jesus was waylaid and Jairus’ daughter died. But Jesus told him to have faith and believe. In private with just the parents and a couple disciples, Jesus brought Anna back to life. When the six performances were held, there were people ready to pray with those who may have been affected by the portrayal of such an intense situation. We can think, ‘I have faith, I believe, so why wasn’t my loved one healed, instead they died.’ We don’t know the mind of God, nor should we try to understand why one lives and the other dies. All that we need remember is that God is a God of grace and mercy who does all things for good. God had His own Son suffer a horrible death and die for all of humankind. That was in His plan from the beginning. Don’t let your hearts be troubled with the whys and wherefores. Just have faith and believe!
Prayer: Thank you, my loving God, for your blessings to me each day. Your love comes to me unconditionally. Grow my faith and help me to always trust and believe in your faithfulness. Amen.
Read: Mark 5:1-20 “So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” Mark 5:20 (NIV) There is so much we could focus on in this miracle. How did this man get infected with so many demons? Why did they choose him? How did the man cope with being tormented day and night? Wouldn’t he have mental health issues now that Jesus had saved him and the demons were gone? Why did Jesus choose to cast the demons into a herd of pigs, which was a person’s livelihood? I can surmise and read other theories, but I will never truly know until I meet Jesus in heaven and start bombarding Him with all my questions. I bet the people in Jesus’ time had so many questions and even more.
Those who witnessed these miracles would have no explanations rather than just believing that Jesus is Lord over all creation and the laws of nature. In this miracle, the witnesses were actually afraid and frightened by Jesus’ power over the demons. If Jesus can cast out demons into two thousand pigs which rush down off a cliff and drown in the lake, what could He do to me? It is frightening. If we didn’t know Jesus as the loving Lord and Saviour who cared and loved all, it is easy to understand how frightening His power would appear. The man who had the demons cast out was so thankful to Jesus that he wanted to follow Him with the disciples, but Jesus told the man to go back into his town and be a witness there.
We don’t have to go to far off places to be witnesses for Jesus – we can be a witness in our own town, city or suburb. Be a friend, be real to your neighbours and those you meet and work with and then with the help of the Holy Spirit show them Jesus through what you say and do. Make sure you do say – actions are not enough… we need to speak that Jesus is the love and Lord over our lives through His death and resurrection and share the hope we have of eternal life. Live for Jesus but speak the promise we have!
Prayer: Dear Jesus, your incredible power is hard to understand. Help me to know and believe that you are God’s Son and then be a witness to others of this hope. Amen.
Read: Mark 4:35-41
“He [Jesus] got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and was completely calm.” Mark 4:35-41 (NIV) There is something about canoeing. Being on the water of a lake or a river and gliding quietly through the reeds and listening to the birds and rustling of the wind in the trees. I went on several canoe trips while at school down the Coorong in South Australia. During one adventure, our group was paddling a distance to the next campground when the wind picked up and the quiet waters were turned into a washing machine with waves and paddling was extremely taxing and difficult. We all finally made it to shore, rather wet and shaken, where we set up camp until the next day when the water was calm again.
From what I have read about the Sea of Galilee, is that it is rather large and known for weather changes that happen quite quickly and without warning. Jesus was tired. He had spent long days healing and teaching so that with the rocking of the boat He fell asleep. Then the wind picked up and the waves started lashing the boat, but tired Jesus just slept on. These were experienced fishermen who called out in fear to their teacher – the night, winds and waves were just too much for them. It didn’t seem right that this caring teacher and master would sleep through their urgent crisis.
So comes their call, “Don’t you care if we drown?” Panic had set in. Sometimes in my life I feel that Jesus just needs to be woken to help me in my troubles. He’s got the power. I know He loves me. So why do I need to suffer? But Jesus is there. He is not asleep, and, in this miracle, we can see that Jesus demonstrates His authority over nature itself and only God can do this! Jesus didn’t let the disciples perish and neither will He let us. We will live forever because we believe that Jesus has the power not just over nature but over death itself and we will live with Him eternally. Jesus tells us, “Peace! Be still!” for He is in the boat with us.
Prayer: My Saviour, I know you care. I know that you never sleep and are always there in any problems and troubles I have. Thank you for being in the boat with me. Amen.
Read: Mark 3:1-6 “Then Jesus asked them, ‘Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?’ But they remained silent.” Mark 3:4 (NIV) I think that God makes teenagers rebellious on purpose. To assert their stance on issues just enough to see if the parents will rise to the occasion and stand up for what they have been telling the child is important. This rebellion makes parents think and look at what is necessary for their child. A child wants to rebel by not wearing a bike helmet – that is non-negotiable. A child doesn’t want to have dinner with parents but rather have it in their room – some parents would allow this. It is hard to be a parent, it seems that there is always something to work out or discuss with growing children.
Society’s rules do not always agree with the house rules either. Jesus was presented with a quandary… how would He deal with it? A man suffering with a shrivelled hand was at the synagogue on the Jewish Sabbath. He needed healing by Jesus, but Jesus knew people were watching Him to see whether He was going to break any Jewish laws, particularly the one of healing on the Sabbath. So instead of doing it quietly, Jesus made it a teaching moment, by asking the accusing leaders whether it is better to do good or evil on the Sabbath. They knew they were stuck between a rock and a hard place and didn’t answer. So, Jesus healed the man right in front of them all. He broke the social norms of the day and chose the better thing to do.
As parents we also feel that we are sometimes stuck between a rock and a hard place with the guiding and leading of our children. Jesus always did what was right, even if others didn’t agree. Society says one thing and our children are guided by peers and social norms, so it is up to us to stand up for Jesus and help our children know that following Him is the better way. God is always with us and will help when we ask for it. Following Jesus’ way is not always the easy way!
Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for standing up when faced with opposition to your Word. Guide me and help me to be able to follow you and your example of living. Amen.
Read: Mark 2:1-12 “So he said to the man, ‘I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.’ He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’” Mark 2: 10b-12 (NIV) There’s a familiar old story that’s told about a tightrope walker who did incredible stunts. All over Paris, he would do tightrope acts at tremendously scary heights. Then, he would do it blindfolded, pushing a wheelbarrow. As the story goes, there was an American promoter who read about this in the newspapers and wrote a letter to the tightrope walker, saying, “Tightrope walker, I don’t believe you can do it, but I’m willing to make you an offer. For a very substantial sum of money, besides all your transportation fees, I would like to challenge you to do your act over Niagara Falls.” The tightrope walker wrote back and said, “Sir, I’d love to come.”
Well, after a lot of promotion and setting the whole thing up, a crowd of people came to see the event. The tightrope walker was to start on the Canadian side and come over to the American side on this rope suspended over the falls. After a suspenseful drum roll, he came across blindfolded. The crowds went wild, and he came to the promoter and says, “Well, Mr. Promoter, now do you believe I can do it?” He said, “Well of course I do. I mean, I just saw you do it.” “No,” said the tightrope walker, “do you really believe I can do it?” “Well of course I do, you just did it.” “No, no, no,” said the tightrope walker, “do you believe I can do it?” “Yes,” said Mr. Promoter, “I believe you can do it.” “Good,” said the tightrope walker, “then get in the wheelbarrow.”
Many people in the house saw Jesus heal the paralytic. The man got up from his mat and walked. But Jesus did more than that; as well as healing the man physically, Jesus healed him from his sins. This offended many and they could not believe it. Jesus has the ability to heal and forgive all our wrongdoings and sins and we can go ahead each day with a clean slate. Do you believe this? Would you get into Jesus’ wheelbarrow?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I know that you love me. I know that you forgive me all my sins each and every day. Give me the faith to trust and believe it. Amen.