| Friday, March 31 |
Mark 11:22-24 |
Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and if you do not doubt in your heart but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you. So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
FAITH AND PRAYER
When I first read this passage, I imagined a present-day comic book hero lifting up a huge mountain and effortlessly tossing it into the ocean. Then I thought of such events from the Bible, like the parting of the sea to allow the Israelites to escape Pharaoh’s army, Jonah being swallowed by a whale, or the walls of Jericho being blown down by horns of the Hebrew army. However, we don’t see those kinds of events happening today except perhaps in the movies or video games or comic books. Miraculous or cataclysmic occurrences are explained away by science or forces of nature and not by acts of God, as were documented in the Bible. So what does this passage really tell us?
First, I don’t think that we are meant to take it literally. The key words are faith and prayer. Faith means putting our trust in the Lord and all things are possible. And God will always answer our prayers. Those answers do not always meet our expectations or timelines. We do not immediately receive everything that we ask for in prayer. But when we put our trust in the Lord, our prayers are answered according to God’s plan for us. We need to be patient. I am reminded of the short prayer that too often illustrates our worldly view of the outcome for our prayers: "Dear God, please give me patience and give it to me right now!”
Second, we do not always recognize how our prayers are answered by God. We can be like a child who wants her dessert first, before eating the main meal. She doesn’t appreciate how important the actual meal is to her health and growth. She doesn’t think about the future development and well-being made possible by those important balanced meals. But fortunately, her parents do think about that and usually insist that she finish the meal first and then enjoy the dessert. And so, we must trust that God answers our prayers in the way that really is best for us. Sometimes it may take days, weeks, even years to make that connection.
Dear Lord, thank you for always answering our prayers, and please help us to understand that those answers always bless us and help us navigate this challenging and difficult world. Help us to be grateful for our faith in you and to practice patience in our lives. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen
Camilla Wilson
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