Author: David Short

Mark 9:23-24

Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

Encouraging Words

I think that this is one of my favorite passages. I can definitely identify with this father and his expression of faith. He knows who Jesus is. He has seen with his own eyes the miracles that Jesus has performed. And here he is with his own son who is possessed by an evil spirit and very sick. He comes to Jesus to have his son treated. That is an expression of his faith. And here Jesus asks him if be believes. It is almost as if Jesus is telling him that if he believes enough, then that belief will be what heals his son. Jesus is telling this father, and all of us, that the power of healing, the power of everything, comes from God, through Jesus, but that we are the ones that direct that power through our belief in Him. It is the cry of the father that touches me so deeply. “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief?”‘ I too believe that Jesus is my Lord and Savior. I too believe that He destroyed death! But I still need His help in the replacement of my unbelief with true belief. Glory be to God! Lord, have Mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have Mercy?

Psalms 40:1-3 (39:1-4 LXX)
I waited patiently for the Lord, and He heeded me;
And He heard my supplication,
And brought me up out of a miserable pit
And from miry clay;
And He established my feet on a rock
And kept straight my steps.
He put a new song in my mouth,
A hymn to our God;
Many will see and be afraid,
And shall hope in the Lord.

Command with a Promise

Talk about a long list of rewards that we receive for doing just one thing…waiting patiently for the Lord. The psalmist proclaims that our Lord will heed us, He will hear our supplication, He will bring us up out of our miserable pit in life, He establishes our feet on a rock and keeps our path straight, He puts a new song in our mouth that will draw others to Him. He does all this when we wait patiently for Him, So, what does that mean? It means that we trust Him to do what is best for us. It means we stop jumping in the driver’s seat and taking over. It means we stop throwing fits when things aren’t going our way or moving along fast enough for us. Patience is never a virtue to be asked for, but always one to pursue. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the impatient sinner!

2 Chronicles 7:14

if My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will be merciful to their sins and heal their land.

Personal Challenge

There have been many times that I have seen this verse as a cry for our nation to be a Christian nation and to practice this verse so that God will make us a better nation. That is not how God works. Our nation was founded on Christian principles but it was never meant to be a place only for Christians. We were always meant to be a place where people of all nationalities, all beliefs, all backgrounds could come and live lives free from oppression in any of these categories. It is our responsibility as Gods’ children, His ambassadors in this world to live our lives in such a way that people will be drawn to Him. This way of living is to be humble before Him as well as our fellow mankind, to be praying and seeking His face at all times, and to turn from our wicked ways. If we do this then He will show mercy and give healing to everyone in the land that we live in. Glory be to God!

Mark 8:34-35

When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.

Personal Challenge

In the Eastern Orthodox church, we have just started our journey into the lenten season. Our liturgies have started to focus more on the upcoming darkness of the death of our Lord on the vicious Roman cross. We have been here year after year, and yet we begin this journey knowing that this will be a time of personal sacrifice and the taking up of the cross for our Lord. I am sure that when the disciples first heard Jesus make this statement they were a little confused, The image of the cross for them was not an image of joy or peace or glory. In their day the Romans put many people to death on the cross. Jesus had not yet given up His life to the crowds, later to be beaten and crucified on the cross, later to arise from the grave victorious over death. So for them, I am sure they were wondering what cross Jesus was referring to. But we know! And we know that Jesus is telling us to lay aside everything that we hold dearly in this world and take up His cross, His passion, His expectations, and follow Him on the journey that He has planned for us. He is telling us that if we want to be like Him then we must die to this world and the things of this world. Only through that death can we begin to receive His life. And so, we enter into Lent, following in His footsteps, step by step shedding the things of the world so that we can enter into the brightness and joy of Pascha (Easter) unencumbered by the things and burdens of this world. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the Sinner!

Psalms 39:7 (38:8 LXX)

And now what is my patience?
Is it not the Lord?
And my support is from You.

Encouraging Words

Oh God, my God, who can I count on more than you? No one or no thing is more reliable than my God. As the Psalmist cries out in this Psalm in praise to our Lord so can I for I know that my patience with this life comes from my Lord. He provides all of the support that I will ever need to make it through each and every day. Glory be to God!

2 Chronicles 1:10-12

Give me wisdom and understanding, so that I may go out and come in before this people, for who can judge this great people of Yours?”

And God said to Solomon, “Because this was in your heart and you did not ask for riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor did you ask for long life, but you asked for wisdom and understanding for yourself, that you might judge My people over whom I made you king, now I will give you this wisdom and understanding. I will also give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings before you possessed, nor shall any after you possess.”

Personal Challenge

What would I ask for if I was granted the opportunity to ask for anything that I wanted? Would I ask for great wealth? Would I ask for power? This is a question that mankind has wrestled with since the beginning of time. Here we have Solomon who is given the opportunity by the God that he loves and that many generations before him have loved and served. He could ask for anything, but he asks for wisdom. He had come to know that the most important gift that we could ever ask for is God’s wisdom. As a reminder, the early church fathers equate wisdom in the Old Testament with Jesus Christ. So, indeed, the most valuable gift any of us could ask for is Jesus Christ, for through Him and the wisdom that He gives us we can thrive in our life here on earth. Glory be to God!

Mark 8:11-12

Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”

Personal Challenge

“Why does this generation seek a sign?” The Pharisees would have had plenty of time to observe Jesus perform many of His miracles. They had every opportunity to know, not only what He was capable of doing, but also what He had done. Then why were they demanding that He show them a sign? They did not want to believe that He was the Messiah. They wanted to have a Messiah that fit their expectations. They did not want to give up their preconceptions and assumptions. Isn’t this very similar to what goes on today? So many people seem to be quite okay with fitting Jesus, our Messiah, into their own box and when they are pointed to the truth about who Jesus really is they get offended and start pushing back or calling us intolerant or obnoxious. The truth is, that we do not, and cannot, create our own definition of who Jesus is. It is our responsibility to yield to God and His definition of who He is. This is why He has given us the Church to do this for us. Glory be to God!

Psalms 37:23-24 (36:22-24 LXX)

For those who bless Him shall inherit the earth,
But those who curse Him shall be utterly destroyed.
The steps of a man are guided aright by the Lord,
And he shall desire His way.
When he falls, he shall not be broken to pieces,
or the Lord supports him with His hand.

Encouraging Words

So many people wonder why those of us who put our trust and our hope in our Lord do what we do. From a worldly point of view that makes a lot of sense. We would all be so much better off in this world if we did not give our tithes and offerings to our church. We would have so much more time in this world if we spent less time at church or in prayer and meditation. We would have so much more fun if we did the things of the world. But that is the entire point. When we chose to follow in the footsteps of our Lord, we left this world behind. Our eyes and heart are set on the kingdom to come. We are in the presence of our Lord and He is now guiding our paths. Glory be to God!