Meditations

Read Mark 14

A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the
word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows
twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when
he thought about it, he wept.
(Mark 14:72)

Thoughts… Poor Peter! He can’t seem to catch a break.

He is the guy who boldly stepped out of the boat to walk on the water—and promptly sank like a rock. He was the first to declare, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” but within seconds was sternly rebuked when Jesus said, “Satan, get behind me, you are an offense to me.” And here at the Last Supper, Peter blurts out, “if all else fall away, I never will”, but within hours he had denied Jesus three times!

Interestingly, each of the four Gospel writers—Peter’s brothers in Christ— have no problem recording Peter’s failures, particularly his denial of Jesus, in exacting detail, to be read again and again throughout the ages.

Peter’s blunder is like those sports bloopers of athletes blowing their teams chances for victory that get replayed over and over again on TV. Remember the poor guy name Steve Bartman, a Chicago Cubs’ fan who interfered with a Cub’s outfielder trying to catch a fly ball. The Cubs were in the playoffs for the first time in, like forever, and if they won, they would go to the World Series.

And this over-zealous fan reaches out and takes a foul ball away from his own player, and the Cubs lose. That faux pas will be replayed on TV forever, or until the Cubs win the World Series, which may be just after forever!

So will Peter’s denial. But thankfully, the story doesn’t end with this fireside blooper. If you take a sneak-peak at the end of the story in Mark 16:7, after the crucifixion, when the women came early in the morning to the tomb on Easter Sunday, an angel at the entrance of the empty tomb gave them this message,

“But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that Jesus is going before
you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

Did you notice the specific reference to Peter? “Tell the disciples…and you especially tell Peter!”

Why did Mark add this line? He specifically wanted Peter, and by extension, you and me, to know that the cross covers the worst of our failures, and by the cross God takes the initiative to restore us to full fellowship with himself.

And that really is the core message of the Gospel! Peter’s blooper forever reminds us that by the power of the resurrection, failure is not final and sin is not fatal.

Our spiritual bloopers don’t get the final word on us. God’s grace does. Jesus made sure of that at the cross!

Prayer… God, thank you for your great grace—greater than all my sin.

One More Thing… “Free grace can go into the gutter, and bring up a jewel!” —Charles Spurgeon

Read Mark 13

“Watch therefore, for you do not know when the
master of the house is coming.”
(Mark 13:35)

Thoughts… Will there really ever be a second coming of Christ? The early believers were convinced that Jesus would return in their lifetime, but he didn’t. Were they wrong to think this way?

Now it’s 2,000 years later and he still hasn’t returned. Can we keep saying we are living in the end times and that Jesus could come back at any moment, or are we mistaken as well? All these signs that he predicted here in Mark 13 have been fulfilled—yet still no Jesus! Are we just fooling ourselves?

We would do well to remember what Jesus said in Mark 13:31 & 37, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away…And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!”

I suppose it is possible that Jesus could delay his coming another 2,000 years—I don’t think so, given the increasing instability of Planet Earth. Whatever the case, 2,000 years is no reproach whatsoever to God’s faithfulness or the truthfulness of his Word. That is precisely the point the Apostle Peter made when he responded to the scoffers who taunted, “Where is the Lord’s coming?” (II Peter 3:4) Peter said,

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (II Peter 3:8-9)

The real reason Jesus has delayed his return is not negligence or carelessness, but kindness and mercy. And frankly, I am glad for that! I am glad Jesus didn’t return in 1956, because I would not have been born. I am glad that Jesus didn’t return in any one of the years since then, because in each successive year I know people who became followers of Jesus and were spared from a Christless eternity.

The fact that 2,000 years have passed is utterly irrelevant to the promise of Christ’s return. His coming is still imminent. It could occur at any moment. And his command to be watchful and ready is just as applicable today as it was to the early church. In fact, the possibility of his return should be even more urgent for us because we are now 2,000 years closer to it.

Paul said in Romans 13:11-12, “The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.”

The writer of Hebrews said, “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith.’” (Hebrews 10:35-38)

What Jesus, Paul, Peter, the writer of Hebrews and every other New Testament author are all saying is that one of the greatest acts of faith is simply this: To keep an eye on the sky and live each day as if Jesus might return at any moment!

That is how the early church lived, and that is exactly how God wants you and me to live! And if I were to truly grasp that, here is what that would mean for me today:

• I would be more patient in suffering. (Hebrews 10:32-39)

• I would be more loving and kind. (Jude 21)

• I would be more assertive in sharing Christ. (II Peter 3:9)

• I would be more forgiving to those who have hurt me. (James 5:8-9)

• I would be more careful in my moral life—my thoughts, attitudes, words and actions. (II Peter 3:11-12)

• I would be a better steward of the resources God has given me. (Matthew 25)

• And I would be more focused on the eternal and less concerned with the temporal. (II Peter 3:13)

The truth is, we were made for another world! Jesus said, “when all these things begin to happen, stand straight and look up, for your salvation is near!” (Luke 21:28, NLT)

So as you go about your business today, keep one eye on the sky—this could be the day!

Prayer… Even so, come Lord Jesus!

One More Thing… “Has this world been so kind to you that you would leave it with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind…If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.” —C.S. Lewis

Read Mark 12

“Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how
the people put money into the treasury.”
(Mark 12:41)

Thoughts… It was offering time in the Temple, and Jesus was watching! He was the “offering police” that day, and he didn’t just happen to notice what people were giving, he was watching them like a hawk.

Jesus saw the quantity and evaluated the quality of each gift, and he was providing a kind of a play-by-play commentary of offering time at the Temple on that particular occasion.

How would you like that next Sunday when the ushers received the offering? What if your pastor came off the platform with the microphone and provided a running commentary on each gift, announcing the amounts in the offering envelopes and revealing if they were proportionate to the giver’s income or not?

Well, that won’t ever happen in most churches I know, certainly not in mine. But I’ll tell you what: It sure would spice up offering time! There would be no need for an offertory; the choir could take a break; the solo could be saved for another part of the service. The play-by-by would be more than enough, wouldn’t you say!

Of course, I am being facetious, but you get the point: Your giving is private, but God knows. He knows what is in your bank account, and he knows what is in your heart. He knows if you are giving joyfully, generously, sacrificially and worshipfully, or if you are giving grudgingly, stingily, selfishly and just for show.

The amount doesn’t count; it’s the heart that God wants in your giving. The poor widow gave only two mites—the modern equivalent of not even one penny. But she gave all she had. She gave out of her poverty, trusting that the God toward whom she was being so generous would now be generous toward her.

The others that day gave out of their abundance, but they put nothing on the line in so doing. They still had plenty, so there was no sacrifice, no trust, no risky faith involved.

God probably won’t require you to empty your bank account the next time you give, but he wants you to empty your heart. That is, he wants all of you when you give. He wants your ongoing stewardship to be characterized by love, generosity, sacrifice, risky faith, and expectant trust.

Before you give again, I hope you will give that some thought. And next Sunday, when it’s offering time, take a moment to thank God that there will be no play-by-play commentary.

Prayer… Lord, impart to me the same grace of giving as the poor widow giving her two mites in the Temple offering. Equip me with that kind of generosity and heroic sacrifice. Bring me to the place where my giving is truly pleasing and acceptable worship to you.

One More Thing… “Give according to your income, lest God make your income according to your giving.”

Read Mark 11

“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against
anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also
forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive,
neither will your Father in heaven
forgive your trespasses.”
(Mark 11:25-26)

Thoughts… Don’t skip past these words too quickly! Far too many Christians claim an exemption on this one—to the Lord’s dismay and their own harm.

Having said that, there is another side to the forgiveness coin that we need to consider if we are going to have theological balance in this matter. The question that always comes up when you begin to talk about forgiveness is: Do we have to forgive everyone who has offended us?

I think there is a fair amount of confusion on this, and a lot of misguided theology is to blame. Perhaps you have been taught that you are to forgive others even when they don’t repent of the wrong they have committed. And the scriptural justification for that is Jesus’ words we read here. Those words might be leveraged, for instance, to say to the wife of a chronically unfaithful husband, “You gotta’ forgive him, or God won’t forgive you.”

But that interpretation fails to reconcile Jesus’ teachings with the rest of scripture, best summarized in Colossians 3:13 and Ephesians 4:32, where we are commanded to forgive others in the same manner that God forgives us.

How does God forgive us? When we confess. Confession opens the door to forgiveness. I John 1:9 says, “If…” underscore that conditional clause, “…if we confess our sins, God will forgive our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Nothing in the Bible indicates that God forgives sin if people don’t confess and repent of the sin.

Furthermore, the Bible always calls the sinner to repentance—that is, a radical reversal of the attitudes and actions that resulted in the sin. Confession without repentance is always hollow. (Matthew 3:7-8, Acts 2:37-38)

So when a wife is encouraged to forgive her adulterous husband while he is continuing in his sin, she is being asked to do something that God himself doesn’t require. What Scripture does teach is that we must always be ready and willing, as God is always ready and willing, to forgive those who repent.

But forgiveness without confession and repentance doesn’t lead to reconciliation. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the great theologian who was martyred by hanging in a Nazis concentration camp in 1945, said forgiveness without repentance is “cheap grace… which amounts to the justification of sin without the justification of the repentant sinner.”

Let me suggest that when there is no confession for a moral wrong committed against you, the better response would be to release that person to God’s justice in hopes that God will deal with them in a way that brings them to repentance and reconciliation.

If you forgive cheaply, as Bonhoeffer warns, you may very well circumvent God’s process to bring that person to repentance and in so doing, close the door to reconciliation in your relationship.

Be very discerning about cheap grace. Genuine forgiveness and Biblical reconciliation require a two-person transaction that is enabled by confession and repentance.

Yes, forgive! Do it early and often, quickly and fully. Be a forgiver, for sure, but don’t go beyond what Scripture teaches.

Prayer… Father, enable me to be a forgiver—just as you are. No more—but certainly no less.

One More Thing… “Forgiveness does not mean excusing.” —C.S. Lewis

Read Mark 10

Then they brought little children to Him, that He might
touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who
brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He was
greatly displeased and said to them, “Let
the little children come to Me, and
do not forbid them; for of such
is the kingdom of God.”
(Mark 10:13-14)

Thoughts… What is God like? Since no human has ever seen him, we are left to wonder how he thinks, what he feels, how he looks, who he really is.

That reminds me of the story of a little girl who was drawing a picture, and her mom said, “Honey, what are you drawing?” Quite confidently, the little girl said, “I’m drawing a picture of God!” The mother informed her that no one really knows what God looks like. To which the little girl said, “they will when I get done.”

People in Jesus’ day had never seen God. They only knew of him from laws that had become wooden, traditions that had become vacuous, and theologies that had become misguided. No one had ever seen God, but Jesus came along and said, “they will when I get done.”

So what does God looks like? Just look at Jesus. The Apostle Paul tells us in Colossians 1:15, “Jesus is the image of the invisible God.” A little later in verse 19, Paul says, “For in Jesus all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.”

In other words, when you see Jesus, you are seeing God himself. Jesus is the perfect picture of God; the absolutely accurate image of the Father. Jesus is the invisible God made visible.

So what do we learn about God by observing Jesus in this chapter? Just look at each of the stories that make up Mark 10—they make the invisible God a lot more visible:

• How does God feel about your marriage? Just look at Jesus telling the Pharisees, “What God has joined together let not man separate.” (Verse 9)

• How does God feel about your children? Just look at Jesus gathering up the children and saying, “Let the little children to come to me…” (Verse 14)

• How does God feel about your struggle to let go of earthly dependencies? Just look at Jesus’ interaction with the rich young ruler: “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” (Verse 21)

• How does God feel about your competitiveness with others? Just look at Jesus saying to his disciples, “Whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.” (Verse 44)

• How does God feel about the things you care about? Just look at Jesus asking blind Bartimaeus, “What do you want Me to do for you?” (Verse 51)

What is God like? What does he look like? How does he feel about you? Just look at Jesus.

Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.”

In Jesus, God has identified with us so we can identify with him. In Jesus, God has come near to us so we can come near to God. In Jesus, God has made a way for us to live before him with complete confidence and daring prayerfulness.

Therefore, as Hebrew 4:16 goes on to say, “let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

Prayer… Father, thank you for making yourself known to me in Jesus. And thank you for making a way through Jesus for me to come into your presence to receive the mercy and find the grace that I need to make it through this day.

One More Thing… “If New Testament Christianity is to reappear today with its power and joy and courage, men must recapture the basic conviction that this is a Visited planet. … the great Mystery, Whom we call God, has visited our planet in Person. It is from this conviction that there springs unconquerable certainty and unquenchable faith and hope. … as a sober matter of history, [in Jesus] God became one of us.” —J.B. Phillips

Read Mark 9

And He sat down, called the twelve,
and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first,
he shall be last of all and servant of all.”
(Mark 9:35)

Thoughts… Here is yet another example of the upside down logic of the Kingdom of God. We get that a lot from Jesus: To live, you’ve got to die; to get, you’ve got to give; to receive honor, you must be willing to be humble; to be rich, you’ve got to give it all away; to be first, you’ve got to be okay with last place; to be great, you’ve got to be the servant of all.

Though from the world’s point of view this is totally upside down, it is totally normal from heaven’s perspective. When you really think about these kinds of counterintuitive statements, you realize that they were values that Jesus deeply held and, in fact, were values that were lived out in his actions every single day of his life.

Furthermore, as you both study the life of Jesus in the Gospels as well as the theology of New Testament letters, you come to the conclusion that these were not simply values that Jesus suddenly embraced when he became man just to impress people and win the adoration of the multitudes. These values show us the fundamental essence of God’s being. As Jesus lived out humility, generosity, servanthood, and sacrifice, you were seeing who God is in living color.

And when we invite Jesus to become the Lord and Savior of our lives and embrace the values of God’s Kingdom as our own, these, then, become the fundamental attributes of who we are and the defining characteristics of how we go about the business of the Kingdom. Or so it should.

If we have had an authentic salvation experience, then humility will be evident to others who are watching our lives. Generosity will characterize our practices with money and possessions. We will eschew pushing and clawing our way to the top and become comfortable with the descent into greatness. And in a way that authenticates the totality of our claim to Christian faith, we will willingly lay down our lives for others—not only in dying, but in that which is much harder to pull off: in sacrificial living.

That is the kind of greatness that endures—greatness in the eyes of God.

Prayer… Lord, you were the servant of all. You came not to be served, but to serve and to give your life away in order to ransom mankind. Help me to take on that kind of selfless, Kingdom-focused mindset. May I be so deeply and profoundly touched by you that, like you, this becomes the essence of my fundamental being.

One More Thing… “The voice of humility is God’s music, and the silence of humility is God’s rhetoric.” —Francis Quarles

Read Mark 8

But when Jesus had turned around and looked at His disciples,
He rebuked Peter, saying, “Get behind Me, Satan! For
you are not mindful of the things of God,
but the things of men.”
(Mark 8:33)

Thoughts… What a dramatic moment this must have been for the disciples—especially Peter. Jesus had just asked the disciples this question, “Who do people say that I am?”

And Peter’s simple yet profound prophetic response was one for the ages: “You are the Christ!” (Mark 8:27-30)

But when Jesus began to speak of his impending sacrificial death, Peter didn’t like it one bit, so he began to rebuke Jesus. How could one who was to be “Christ” suffer and die? This certainly wasn’t in line with God’s will, Peter thought. Peter had an entirely different definition for what it meant to be “Christ”, and a far better agenda than the one Jesus was suggesting.

That’s when Jesus turned on Peter and gave him the spiritual smack-down of all smack-downs. Anyone who reads these dramatic words — “Get behind me, Satan” — certainly must think, “Wow! Glad that wasn’t me!”

It was then that Jesus went on to talk about the cost of discipleship. True discipleship requires one to jettison his own agenda — “let him deny himself”; commit to God’s agenda — “take up his cross”; and make daily, continual obedience his highest priority — “and follow Me.” (Mark 8:34)

As dramatic as this rebuke seems in print, however, may I suggest that perhaps it wasn’t as focused on Peter as we might think. When you look at the context, what you see is that Jesus wasn’t so much upset with Peter, the person, as with Peter’s misguided agenda. You see, Peter’s plan would have taken Jesus off the Father’s mission. It was the easier, smarter, less painful path, but as Jesus said, it was “not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.” (Mark 8:33).

In a sense, we really were there when Jesus uttered that rebuke. We were not only there — we were Peter! How so? Haven’t we, too, been the tool of Satan in desiring the things of men rather than the things of God. How often have we preferred our way — the easier, cheaper, quicker, pain-free way — to discipleship rather than the way of the cross? How often has the essence of our prayers, if not our desires, been, “not your will but mine be done”?

Peter took the brunt of Christ’s rebuke that day—but he did so as the representative head of a class of spiritual dunderheads of which you and I are members.

Peter ultimately got his spiritual act together, and so can we. What that requires, however, is that we get the things of God rather than the things of men in our view finder, and keep our sights there.

Prayer… Lord, deliver me from the Evil One, who would lure me onto the easier, quicker, pain-free path of the things of men. May your will be done—not mine. May your kingdom come today in my life, just as it is done in heaven.

One More Thing… “No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown.” —William Penn

Read Mark 7

Jesus answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of
you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with
their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they
worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments
of men.’ For laying aside the commandment of
God, you hold the tradition of men…”
(Mark 7:6-8)

Thoughts… As Jesus began to preach and minister the Kingdom of God, conflict with the Pharisees, religious leaders and other “stakeholders” in traditional Judaism increased dramatically. They didn’t like the fact that Jesus wasn’t holding to their traditions at all—and Jesus wasn’t intimidated by their pressure to conform.

In this particular conflict, they were upset that his disciples didn’t go through ritual washing before eating. This was just one of many “violations” that upset them. When they questioned Jesus about it, he let loose a holy tirade against their ridiculous traditions. In dressing down these leaders, we see something of what is truly irksome to God: Shallow, hypocritical, spiritually incongruent religiosity.

Jeremy Taylor writes, “The Pharisees minded what God spoke, but not what He intended….They were busy in the outward work of the hand, but incurious of the affections and choice of the heart. So God was served in the letter, they did not much inquire into His purpose; and therefore they were curious to wash their hands, but cared not to purify their hearts.”

God wasn’t impressed with the Pharisees, nor is he impressed with your rituals; he wants to be in relationship with you. Holding onto tradition for the sake of tradition is meaningless to God; he wants your acts of worship to be authentic. Lips that affirm one thing but a heart that holds to something else is completely odious to God—be very alert to that.

God desires integrity in our behavior, intimacy in our walk with him, and authenticity in our worship practices. Spirituality devoid of integrity, intimacy, and authenticity is even more repulsive to God than people who know they are sinners and don’t try to hide the fact.

Now there is an obvious application to this particular reading: God wants your heart. And he wants the heart you offer him to be pure. But let me suggest a riskier application of this text, as well as all the other accounts of Jesus’ confrontations with the Pharisees: Rather than reading them and feeling a sense of spiritual justification, why not read yourself into the story as one of the Pharisees. You see, the longer you are in the faith, the greater the likelihood that you will slip into some of the very practices God found so odious in the religious establishment of Jesus’ day.

Whatever it takes, keep your relationship with God fresh and vital!

Prayer… Lord, keep me close to you. Don’t let my heart ever grow insensitive. Keep me tender and constantly, passionately pursuing a loving relationship with you.

One More Thing… “The Pharisees are not all dead yet, and are not all Jews.” —John McClintock

Read Mark 6

He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His
hands on a few sick people and healed them. And
He marveled because of their unbelief.
(Mark 6:5-6)

Thoughts… This is one of the most amazing texts in the entire Bible. Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, the visible image of the invisible God; the one who existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation; the one through whom God created everything in the heaven and on earth, the things we can see and the things we can’t see—thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world; the one by whom all creation is held together (Colossians 1:15-17)…

This Jesus who had raised the dead, healed the sick, delivered the demonized, fed the five thousand, and walked on water, could do no mighty works in his own town because of the unbelief of the people who knew him.

And even he—the one who had seen it all—was amazed by their unbelief. I would say it must take an awful lot to stump Jesus!

What is the one thing Jesus can’t do? Violate a person’s willful unbelief, that’s what. He will help a person’s humble admission of unbelief (Mark 9:14-25), but he will not impose his Lordship on someone’s refusal to give him a chance.

Do you think we sometimes do that with Jesus? We’ve seen his glory; we’ve tasted his goodness; we’ve been touched by his love and grace and power. Yet we still question his right of Lordship over our lives. How? By doubt, worry, fear, depression, anger—engaging in any number of self-medicating, self-destructive acts—overspending, overeating, oversleeping, over-talking, over-sharing, over-indulging, sexually addictive behaviors, substance abuse…

Why would we surrender to any of those when we’ve touched the power and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ? I don’t know. Sometimes my own propensity to resist his loving Lordship amazes me.

Here’s what I do know: If we will take an honest look at where we are resisting his right to rule over us—both passively and willfully—and come to him with a humble request that he help our unbelief, even that crack in the door will be enough for him to do his might works in our lives.

Prayer… Jesus, there are still areas of my life where I resist your Lordship. Help my unbelief. I open the door of my heart to you, and invite you to burst through it to accomplish your mighty works in me.

One More Thing… “Beware in your prayers, above everything else, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things, ‘above all that we ask or think’. Each time, before you Intercede, be quiet first, and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, and how He delights to hear the prayers of His redeemed people. Think of your place and privilege in Christ, and expect great things!” —Andrew Murray

Read Mark 5

While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the
synagogue’s house who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why
trouble the Teacher any further?” As soon as Jesus heard
the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the
synagogue, “Do not be afraid; only believe.”
Mark 5:35-36)

Thoughts… A young man came to me recently, asking for prayer that God would give him the faith to raise the dead. It wasn’t a general request, mind you; it was to raise a friend of a friend who had just died.

I faced a moment of awkwardness. I do believe that the dead can be raised. Jesus said we would do the works he did, which included raising the dead, and even greater works. I have read about the dead being raised throughout the history of Christianity. I have heard missionaries tell stories of the dead being raised on foreign fields. In my work in Ethiopia, I have interviewed church leaders who have, themselves, actually raised the dead. In fact, there are reports of the dead being raised in that country to the tune of about one every twenty-four hour period.

While I suspect more Biblical authorities today would question what I have just said than what would accept it, I have no doubts whatsoever about the validity of such testimonies.

Yet as this sincere young man stood before me with his request, I struggled with how to pray. Did I really believe God could use him to raise the dead? Do I believe that resurrections are for everywhere else but America? Do I believe in it theoretically, but not in reality?

I suspect that the young man, and the others who were engaged in the conversation, sensed my hesitancy. In the seconds that passed, I faced a crisis of belief. But in that moment, the conviction of the Holy Spirit won out, and I said to him, “Yes, I will pray for you. If the dead were raised by New Testament Christians, then we ought to expect that God can use us 21st century American believers to raise the dead too!”

Do you believe that’s possible? Not just in theory, but in reality…right here, right now, in the good ol’ US of A?

I completely understand if you hesitate—that’s what I did. Yet Jesus words to Jairus nearly two thousand years ago are for you and me today: Don’t be afraid; only believe.

Who knows—maybe one of us just crazy enough to believe will actually raise the dead one of these days. I sure hope so!

Prayer… Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. Let me see your miracles—even the dead being raised here in America—in my generation.

One More Thing… “…The question whether miracles occur can never be answered simply by experience. Every event which might claim to be a miracle is, in the last resort, something presented to our senses, something seen, heard, touched, smelled, or tasted. And our senses are not infallible. If anything extraordinary seems to have happened, we can always say that we have been the victims of an illusion. If we hold a philosophy which excludes the supernatural, this is what we always shall say. What we learn from experience depends on the kind of philosophy we bring to experience. It is therefore useless to appeal to experience before we have settled, as well as we can, the philosophical question.” —C.S. Lewis