| TODAY'S SCRIPTURE "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." (Luke 7:22-23)
TODAY'S WORD , not long after Herod had John the Baptist arrested and imprisoned, John began to doubt who Jesus was. You see, John probably thought Jesus was going to overthrow the Roman government and establish His kingdom right then and there. But no such thing happened. So John's doubt took over and he sent a message to Jesus, asking, " 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?' " (Luke 7:20). John's faith did not falter because God failed him. He doubted because he failed to understand God's purpose and plan.
Failing to understand God's purpose and plan is often the reason that believers experience lapses of faith. Our faith falters not because God has been inconsistent, or unfaithful, or because God has broken His promises. We experience lapses of faith because we have a false perception of what God is supposed to accomplish. Our expectations of God are not pure. We offer our prayers to Him and expect Him to answer with exact precision. And when God doesn't come through like we asked Him to, we-like John-can doubt who God is.
John the Baptist's problem was that he did not understand God's will. But he did something right, he looked to Jesus for the answers and received the hope he needed (see Luke 7:2-23). Maybe you are experiencing a lapse of faith much like John the Baptist. If so, don't despair. Look past your expectations and disappointments, and look unto Jesus. Seek His purpose and His plan, recognizing it will far exceed your greatest hopes and dreams.
A PRAYER FOR YOU TODAY Heavenly Father, I give you a million thanks that I have woken up alive this morning, once again to witness the magnificence, the glory of your creation. Even on the dreariest of days, when the weather doesn't suit me, let me rejoice in the taste of heaven you give us on earth. For the hottest, muggiest day; the coldest and most bitter weather; the clouds, the rain, the wind and snow, the lightning and thunder - these are all your creations, oh Lord, and all of them have a great beauty if I just take the time to see it. Should I be blind, what would I give to see the cloudy rainy day that I complain about? Should I be deaf, how much I would long to hear your thunder! When I lie dying, how sweet it will seem to have been bundled up against a chill wind, or to be soaked in sweat as I work in the heat and humidity. Let me be always filled with gratitude for the world you have given me, great God, Father and creator of all that is. Amen |
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