This past weekend Clint and I went on a Pre-Lenten spiritual retreat to Idyllwild, where we stayed at a beautiful cabin called
We began each day together with breakfast and prayer, doing a little exploring, and enjoying the beauty of the area. After lunch we split up for several hours, to silently spend the afternoons with God, praying, reading Scripture and devotional literature, and just being in the presence of God. In the evenings we returned together by the fireplace to eat some delicious food and to share what God had spoken to us. It was a rich time and exactly what our souls needed – solitude and togetherness, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, surrounded by the beauty of creation and the freshly fallen snow…and an insane amount of squirrels!
My big reflection for the weekend was concerning faith – trusting that God is truly good enough, powerful enough, just enough, and merciful enough, that I can trust Him with the details of my life – with my passions, my desires, my hopes and dreams, my hurts and frustrations, and ultimately with our future.
Reading from Mark 9 I was reminded of the story of a loving, yet desperate father. His son has been demon-possessed for years, throwing him into fire and water, seeking to wreak havoc and destroy his life. You get the sense that the father has tried everything, visited anyone he could, tried all the local and perhaps exotic recipes that he could afford. Upon hearing that Jesus was in the area, he brings his son to the disciples. To his disappointment, they can do nothing for him. Once again it seems like the situation is hopeless. That’s when he meets Jesus.
The father explains the situation of the boy’s condition to Jesus, detailing the struggle, pain, and agony. Jesus then asks how long this has been happening. It seems like a harmless question, but in his answer, you can hear it in the father’s voice when he says, “since childhood.” You can hear that despair, that longing with no answers. “If you can do anything,” he says, “have compassion on us and help us,” expecting another disheartening reply.
Instead Jesus is indignant, “If I can? If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes,” reminiscent of the angel’s reply to the Virgin Mary at the annunciation that “all things are possible with God.” With tears streaming, the father replies, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” He recognizes his lack of faith, earnestly requesting the grace to believe. It is at that moment when Jesus heals the boy. In a way the healing was as much for the father as it was for the son – restoring his faith in the Lord, and His trust in the power and goodness of God. That afternoon his son arose, healed, and the father returned home with a renewed joy and hope in the Lord.
What is there in your life that has you despairing? Is it waiting, year after year for a spouse, for someone to love? Perhaps it is the desire to have children, but the details are just not lining up yet. Or is it a financial or medical struggle? A dream not fulfilled? A longing never satisfied? Pray to the Lord. Ask Him to increase your faith, believing with all the strength that you have, and leaning on His grace to get you through. I know that it is not easy, and that situations and circumstances do not always change as we would wish, but in releasing our struggles and putting our hope, our faith in the Lord, there is true freedom and peace.
May you experience the joy of a rich faith in the Lord!
No comments:
Post a Comment