"The Miracles of Jesus", Part VI: Failure Begins with "We"

Focus passage: Mark 9:14-29

Joe began the men’s club meeting with a sigh. Only three people had shown up again. What was the use of even trying to hold the meeting? There weren’t enough people to get anything done. He remembered just a few years ago when the group numbered twenty each month. Now look at it. Some had suggested that the whole group disband, but Joe enjoyed the fellowship with the few who still came. This was a good group of men. There just weren’t many of them. What should they do to make it better? Why can’t we succeed like we did before? It was in such chaos that Jesus miraculously triumphed. 

"The miracles of Jesus", Part V: Seeing Clearly

Focus passage: Mark 8:19-30

Jesus had used five loaves to feed 5000 people and seven loaves to feed 4000 people. Yet, it was clear that the disciples did not understand what Jesus had done. He is frustrated at the limits of their faith. Yet, it is still the experience of people today. You first discover Jesus as your Savior and then slowly grasp what it means to be a disciple of Jesus over the course of your life. You grow in knowledge, but more important you have to grow in your ability to serve and to witness to others. Jesus heals a blind man in stages in Mark 8:22-26 that parallels the disciple’s statements of faith in the verses following the miracle. 

"The miracles of Jesus", Part IV:Great Provider

Focus passage: Mark 8:1-9

It sent a shudder down his back. Steve had been in this waiting room before sitting in this padded chair looking at his reflection in the buffed floor and hearing people’s foot steps in the hallway to his left. His wife had woken with chest pains. Here in the hospital waiting room he was terrified. Would it be a heart attack like last time? Would she need surgery again? The memories flooded back over him. He began to pray and a different kind of memory surrounded his fears. Last time when there was little chance of recovery, the Lord had worked a miracle. Suddenly, he could feel God’s presence. He was not alone. God was there at his side. There is power in remembering what God can do. Sadly, the disciples did not remember in Mark 8:1-9 what Jesus was capable of. 

"The Miracles of Jesus", Part III: Simply Amazing

Focus passage: Mark 6: 45-56

Bob sat and just stared out the window. He wanted to be anywhere but sitting at the kitchen table this morning. The hospital bills were piled high and he wasn’t sure how to pay them all. The doctor said Bob’s wife Judy was doing better, but Bob couldn’t see it. With his head in his hands, he felt helpless. He began to cry as he prayed to Jesus. Why Lord? Don’t you care about us? Give me a sign so that I know what to do. As he prayed, he opened up the Bible and came to the story of the disciples helpless in the boat. In the margin of his bible, he had written “Helplessness can teach us to lean on Jesus. He began to pray for Jesus’ help.  

"The Miracles of Jesus", Part II: Desperate to Daughter

Focus passage: Mark 5:25-34

 

We bow our head in anguish. We are desperate and nothing is turning out right. Life seems overwhelmed with problems that just don’t seem to have any answers. 

Illness, job loss, and divorce break us till we despair that life might as well be over. We are angry with the world and can be angry with God. This shouldn’t happen to me. Why is it so easy for everyone else and so hard for me? We can live in our self-pity or we can turn to the Lord. Desperation is like the desert. The heat of life takes away all your strength. You can either turn toward God letting Him guide you through your troubles or you can turn from him and wander till the troubles dry up your soul. Jesus wants to turn the "desperate" into "daughters and sons" of God.