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.
Read: Mark 1:21-28 “The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, ‘What is this? A new teaching – and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.’” Mark 1:27 (NIV) A schoolteacher injured his back and had to wear a plaster cast around the upper part of his body. It fit under his shirt and was not noticeable at all. On the first day of term, still with the cast under his shirt, he found himself assigned to the toughest students in school. Walking confidently into the rowdy classroom, he opened the window as wide as possible and then busied himself with desk work. When a strong breeze made his tie flap, he took the desk stapler and stapled the tie to his chest. He had no trouble with discipline that term.
Jesus was great teacher. He taught with authority from God. He had personal experience about His Heavenly Father and the Kingdom of God. He was able to enforce the power of nature to acknowledge His sovereignty. In Jesus’ day, there were a lot of religious teachers who taught about God’s Word, but Jesus came clearly knowing what God wanted to say to His people. Jesus being part of the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) came to earth with first-hand knowledge of God’s will. In Jesus we find God himself proclaiming His Word to His people.
There was no uncertainty, there were no questions, and His testimony was clear and to the point. When a man with a demon came shouting about who Jesus was. This was truth, not blasphemy, but Jesus didn’t need acknowledgement from a demon – He has ruling authority over Satan and so commanded it to be quiet and it comes screaming out of the man. Now, that is authority! The ultimate authority over death and Satan came on the cross. Jesus battled Satan and won the victory of eternal life and forgiveness for us. Jesus rose from the dead and reigns in Heaven with His Father – our Father! Defeating Satan is what Jesus does best!
Prayer: Lord Jesus, you have ultimate authority overall, yet you chose to come to me to listen, love and forgive me. Thank you for being my Saviour. Amen.
Read: Matthew 21:18-22 Jesus said: “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” Matthew 21:22 (NIV) When we left Loxton, I took with me a big rhubarb plant which had provided me through the years with lovely rhubarb pies, stewed rhubarb and rhubarb yeast cake. It produced abundantly. So I dug it up and potted it. When arriving in Noosa I made a lovely new raised garden bed, planted my rhubarb, fed it, watered it regularly and covered it from the digging bush turkeys. It did well for a while and then stopped producing the lovely leaves. I tried giving it more attention, but to no avail… it perished! I wondered what had caused it to die but dug up the roots and the plant to rework the soil when I discovered the source of the death.
There were huge white grubs chomping on my rhubarb’s roots. The foundation of the plant was literally being eaten. Reading through the miracle of Jesus in Matthew 21:18-22, I couldn’t help but think of my rhubarb. The roots and foundation were gone, there was nothing that could now give it sustenance to produce fruity stems. Jesus discovered this with a fig tree. One thing about a fig tree, if it has leaves it should have fruit. Jesus wanted some breakfast as He was hungry, but as there were no figs, He cursed the tree and immediately it withered. The disciples were amazed!
Faith and trust are the roots and foundation of being a disciple of Jesus. He tells us that even a small amount of faith can move a mountain or wither a fig tree. It is very easy as we live and move through our lives to have this faith and trust eaten away and eroded and doubts begin to creep in. No matter how much we water and feed our faith – if we doubt that Jesus is Lord – our faith and lives will not produce the fruit that God wants us to: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Belief comes from faith and trust!
Prayer: Merciful God, grow faith into my life. Help me to believe you always and know that you are the Lord of my life. In you I trust. Amen.
Read: Matthew 17:24-27 “Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.” Matthew 17:27b (NIV) A couple years ago I started playing social ‘pickleball’. It has different rules and strange terms and uses a type of beach bat and waffle ball. One rule is you need to stay out of the ‘kitchen’ area and the only time you can go in there is when the hard waffle ball bounces in there. To participate in this sport and others, there are rules that need to be followed. When I got my first part-time job I learned about taxes. No one is exempt who is of age, and you give a tax according to your salary for the successful running of the country and society. Jesus doesn’t often talk about money, but there are a couple times when Jesus is asked questions about taxes. This story is one of them. He is in a temple in Capernaum and there they have a temple tax for each person of 2 drachma (this is less than 1c in AUD).
Some temple officials asked Peter if Jesus pays this tax. Jesus turns it back to Peter asking him whether kings get their taxes from their own children or others. When Peter replied, “Others”, Jesus said, “So the children are free?” – referring to the fact that our salvation as God’s children has been paid. Jesus was thinking way too deeply for Peter and so said that they would pay their temple taxes to the officials so that they wouldn’t offend the system. They didn’t have the money for the taxes for them both – four drachmas, so Jesus performed a miracle telling Peter to go fishing and get the coins out of the mouth of the first fish caught. If only paying our taxes were that easy!! But it is this easy. Jesus was the one who paid all our debts for us when He went to the cross for our sake to forgive us all our wrongdoing. We will still have to pay taxes in this life, but our eternal life and freedom has been paid for. Our debt was paid on the cross!
Prayer: My loving Saviour, thank you for paying the debt owed for my salvation. You shower me with blessings every day, please help me to not take the gifts of life and love for granted. Amen.
Read: Matthew 15:21-28 “Then Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.’ And her daughter was healed at that moment.” Matthew 15:28 (NIV) I really enjoy making greeting cards. I love to take a blank piece of card and with creativity and persistence, a card is created for someone whom I love. I think that over the years I have gotten better, and my creativity has expanded as well as all the tools of the trade I have gathered in my little (or not so little) cupboard. I have been to craft shows, workshops and listened and watched friends to gain more ideas and courage to try something different. Because it is something I am passionate about and really enjoy I try to squeeze in time to make them for others. When we are passionate about something, we can become quite persistent and relentless in getting it right. A woman came to Jesus asking for help. She was not a Jewish woman, but a Canaanite woman, who at that time meant she was a pagan and unclean to the Jewish people.
When you read this story, at first, it appears that Jesus insulted this woman when he appeared to call her a ‘dog’. However, in this metaphor, Jesus was at this time trying to explain the priorities in His ministry as well as teaching His disciples. Non-Jews were known as Gentiles and were considered so unspiritual that even being in their presence could make a person unclean. Then Jesus explained that His duty was to the people of Israel and changing this would be like a father taking food from his children and giving it to the pets. Jesus was sent to turn everything upside down. The woman said she understood for that was within the cultural norms but had the persistence to keep asking. She believed Jesus could heal her daughter. Jesus then tested her intentions and her faith in Him. Do we have the faith and convictions in our Saviour to keep asking and to keep persisting in our prayers? Are the things we are asking for something Jesus could do for yours or others well-being? Persistence takes an effort and great faith!
Prayer: Loving Father, keep me asking, keep me searching for your truths in this world. Help me to have the faith that you will answer all my prayers. Amen.