FAITH CONNECTION – FARMERSVILLE UMC
Ministry Updates for Friday, July 31, 2020
Faith Connection emails will be coming from my email this week. – Carol Barnes
Facebook Live Worship—Sunday, August 2nd, at 9:30 a.m. Please join us as we again worship through Facebook Live.
Today’s Faith Connection was contributed by Mary Jacoby: Doubt & Healing, Part 2
Scripture: Mark 9:28-29
And when He had entered the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” And He said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”
Reflection
Behind closed doors, the disciples openly doubted the strength of their faith to Jesus. Was the reason that they couldn’t heal the son because they had unbelief in their hearts like the father had? Were they not as holy as they had thought?
Perhaps it’s not unbelief that caused the disciples to not be able to heal the son, though. Perhaps it was because God wanted them to go straight to him in prayer instead of relying on their own abilities. Like when a child is learning how to ride their bike. They are taught the steps… both hands on the handlebars, pedal left foot, pedal right foot, maintain balance. But inevitably while learning there will be some falls. When children fall down, their friends may come to help, may help them get off the ground and check on scraped knees. But the father helping teach the child to ride the bike will come running to help too. Possibly because the friends asked him to come help. But also, because he wanted to come. The father knows that he is more capable to help his child get up off the ground, clean the wounds, put bandages on, and drive them to the hospital for stitches if needed. But more importantly, the father wants to help his child because he loves them.
And isn’t that the same as our relationship with our Father in heaven? When we are hurting, our friends do their best to help us. But God also wants us to go to Him in prayer and heals our wounds because He cares for us deeply. If our friends and family can provide such great support in times of hardship, how much greater will God’s be?
Prayer
Our Father in Heaven, thank you for caring for us in ways we aren’t able to care for ourselves. Thank you for always being present. May we turn to you when we fall down. Remind us that we are never alone as we walk through life and that you want to be present in our lives, through the good times and the hard times. We are so grateful to have a God that loves each and every one of us enough to want to be intimately involved in our lives. We pray to you that you may bless us with your healing power today and every day of our lives. Love, your children. Amen.