Gleanings – Jesus Heals. Believe It!
Epiphany 3, Tuesday, January 29, 2013
http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/bcp/
“He could do no mighty work there. . . He marveled because of their unbelief.”
Jesus was struggling to heal because of the absence faith. The presence of faith does not insure healing. Normally, the absence of faith precludes it. “Normally,” I said. Jesus is able to heal who He wants when He wants. But faith is normally a part of the equation. He healed ten lepers. He saved the one who returned and believed. Faith expanded the healing exponentially.
Jesus heals! Do you believe? A friend has on his Facebook page a saying like this. “To believe something is to act as if it true.” I have not acted lately as if God heals. Jesus would marvel at my unbelief.
I need healing. That is apparent. Some folks probably believe I need a lot more than I do. I suffer still from voids in my childhood. Physical affection was not a large part of my youth. For a long time I struggled to love physically. Jesus healed. Consequently I love my wife and kids well in that way. All too soon that will be an embarrassment to my boys.
My ability to trust men in authority over me or with me is much less than it should be. This is with good reason. I have been betrayed a number of times especially by leaders in the church. How ironic. I made a list and I could not name a single betrayer outside the structure of the church. Anyway, my experiences should not make universal that which is particular. Not every man will betray. And to some degree it might have been a self-fulfilling prophecy. Possibly I helped bring it on because it was highly anticipated.
In the last few months and especially in this past weekend, the Lord healed me of looking for validation in the wrong place. He is my rock. He is my fortress. He is meant to be my identity. An identity in him is one that cannot be shaken. He is enabling me to love and lead apart from hearing “well done” from others. How? Because Jesus has become the horse whisperer for me. He is speaking softly to me the words “well done.” He whispers them again and again.
I think I will act as if healing is true, because it is and I have experienced it.