"When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.'" – Mark 2:5

In 2013, a small group of believers prayed fervently for a 25 year-old man, Luke Bernard, in a coma after a severe car accident. Despite grim medical reports, he regained consciousness and fully recovered. One of the attending neurosurgeons, Dr. Peter Gruen said,

“Somebody like Mr. Bernard, who comes in with a Glasgow Coma Score of three and then a few months later is walking into my brain injury clinic–I could count those on one hand. So very, very, very uncommon. And I hesitate to say the word, but, you know, it is almost—when you see it, the first word that comes to your mind is like—miraculous.”¹

Many years before, friends of a paralyzed man tore through a roof to bring him to Jesus. Their innovation and determination were rewarded when Jesus cryptically forgave the man’s sins, and then healed his legs. Interestingly, this story said nothing of the man’s faith, but Jesus responded to forgive and heal when “he saw” the faith of the man’s friends, (Mark 2:5). Perhaps it wasn’t that the friends simply believed Jesus was the Messiah, but were convinced that the best thing for their friend was to get him as close as possible to Jesus, regardless of the consequences. May we boldly act with the same conviction.

Reflection:

• How can you intercede for others in faith today?
• What obstacles might be preventing you from approaching Jesus?
• How does this story inspire perseverance in prayer?

• Art: Christ healing the paralytic at Capernaum by Bernhard Rode 1780, Self-photographed, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5782664
• Songs: “Waymaker” by Leeland & “Miracle in Me” by Red Rocks Worship

1. From an interview with the 700 Club, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3k_L9N3QMc
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"Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves." – Matthew 14:19

In a world dominated by scarcity and drowning in lack, we find it difficult to believe that God is limitless. Perhaps more accurately, we find it difficult to act like God is not limited. We are aware of His mighty power, or even convinced of His ability to provide, but, like the twelve disciples (and the twelve, stiff-necked tribes they represent) we are so accustomed to the old life in the old world of “never quite enough,” that we find it easier to think the old survival thoughts and make the same old mistake: we leave the presence of Life Himself to go buy food that won’t satisfy. We’ve seen too much to imagine that God might just give us what we need if we were to ask.

Jesus’ child-like faith is nearly overshadowed by his child-like gratitude for so little. We regularly fail to recognize what we have been given, but Jesus goes so far as to lock eyes with His limitless Father and, without a hint of sarcasm, expresses gratitude for one lunch in a sea of hunger. Oh, that God would free our imaginations to be radically grateful once again! It seems that Chesterton was right–”we have sinned and grown old,” and the Ancient of Days is “younger than we,” (Orthodoxy, 82). One can nearly see the playful gleam in Jesus’ eye as each of His twelve disciples shouldered his own personal basket of leftovers. May we accept our Generous Host’s invitation to sit at His table and have our tired eyes opened as Jesus lifts our gaze up with His to praise and give thanks to the Giver of “every good and perfect gift,” (James 1:17).

Reflection:

• What “small” thing can you entrust to God for Him to multiply?
• How does this story encourage you to view challenges differently?
• When have you witnessed God’s abundance in your life?

• Art: The Widow’s Mite (Le denier de la veuve) by James Tissot – Online Collection of Brooklyn Museum; Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2008, 00.159.211_PS2.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10957531
• Song: “I’ve Witnessed It” by Passion and Melodie Malone

"The jar of flour was not used up, and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord." – 1 Kings 17:16

In 1923, George Müller, a Christian evangelist caring for orphans in England, faced an empty pantry. Immediately after George prayed, a baker unexpectedly delivered bread, and a milkman offered milk because his cart had broken down. God’s provision was timely and unmistakable. In a journal entry for February 12, 1842, he wrote:

“A brother in the Lord came to me this morning and, after a few minutes of conversation gave me two thousand pounds for furnishing the new Orphan House … Now I am able to meet all of the expenses. In all probability, I will even have several hundred pounds more than I need. The Lord not only gives as much as is absolutely necessary for his work, but he gives abundantly. This blessing filled me with inexplicable delight. He had given me the full answer to my thousands of prayers during the [past] 1,195 days.¹”

Elijah’s encounter with a widow during a famine teaches us about God’s provision. When she trusted God with her last bit of oil and flour, He miraculously multiplied it. Even when we feel we have little to offer, God can turn it into more than enough.

Reflection:

• What “little” in your life can you offer to God today?
• How can you trust Him more with your resources?
• When has God surprised you with unexpected provision?

• Art: A sculpture at Sayn Abbey by Lothar Spurzem, CC BY-SA 2.0 DE https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/de/deed.en, via Wikimedia Commons
• Songs: “At The Altar (Acoustic)” by Elevation RHYTHM and “Oil and Offering” by SEU Worship

1. The Autobiography of George Müller (Springdale, Pennsylvania: Whitaker House, 1984), ISBN 0-88368-159-5, p198, accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_M%C3%BCller#cite_ref-13 ↩︎

“This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory.” – John 2:11

At a wedding in Cana, Jesus turned water into wine, demonstrating His power and care for life’s small joys. He transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary, just as He can transform our lives when we surrender to Him. Through this “first sign” of Jesus’ glory, according to John, we are given a glimpse into Jesus’ ultimate purpose: inaugurating God’s promised kingdom and the rule of His Messiah over all the nations. According to Isaiah 25, God would swallow up death forever, save His people, and turn their tears into gladness, all at a celebration “banquet of refined and aged wine,” (Is. 25:6-9).

If we’re careful, we might notice that the first sign is given on the “third day,” (John 2:1). At the end of the chapter, Jesus’ response to the religious elites’ angry demand for a “sign,” is a the destruction and “raising up” of the temple on the “third day,” (John 2:19). The fulfillment of this very prediction will be the seventh of Jesus’ “signs” later in the book of John. At the beginning of John’s story, he has revealed to us both the beginning and the end–a glimpse of the “joy set before” Jesus¹, and the cruciform cost. And both are miracles to be realized on the “third day.”
Perhaps most baffling of all, Jesus’ mother seems to change Jesus’ timeline with her request, boldly asking, and then releasing control with her confident instructions: “Whatever He tells you, do it,” (John 2:5). May we also be “pushy” for heaven to “marry” earth in our own time and space, simultaneously releasing the outcomes to our compassionate and generous Heavenly Father.

Reflection:

• What “ordinary” part of your life could God transform if surrendered to Him?
• How do you see His care for your daily needs and joys?
• How can this story inspire greater trust in His timing?

• Art: Marriage at Cana, 1561, by Jacopo Tintoretto – Web Gallery of Art:   Image  Info about artwork, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15542127
• Songs: “New Wine ” by Hillsong Worship & “Beautiful Things” by Gungor

1. Hebrews 12:2 ↩︎

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. – Genesis 1:1-2

The Bible opens with an awe-inspiring act: God creating the universe from nothing. Simply by speaking, He formed light, seas, land, and life, demonstrating His unparalleled power and creativity. But the canvas for this beautiful creation is the cruel reality of chaos and surging seas that would defy any hope for habitation. And like the “mouth of the wicked” from Proverbs 10, a drowsy darkness conceals the drowning below. Yet it is precisely in between these parallel “surfaces,” that a damp hope finds its spark. They are truly one surface, but they are also two. Covered by darkness, the primordial surface is abysmal and threatening. Yet beneath the hovering wings of God’s Spirit, the very same surface is tensioned with life-giving potential. It is from this pivotal moment forward that the Word of God is heard floating out over the waters, calling in a loud voice for Life to leave its watery grave.

Beginnings are rarely lucky and almost never pretty. They are awkward, vulnerable, full of anxiety and adrenaline, and by definition, they inhabit the space between utter ruin and our first taste of victory. As we begin this journey of 21 days to discover what is possible for the God who is eternally turning death into life, let’s be honest and call the chaos for what it is. There’s no need to avoid or downplay the real grief, darkness, loss, despair, or ignorance that make the word “impossible” feel cliché. They are truly deadly and desolate, and the first words of Genesis agree. And let us also acknowledge that these are the very conditions that arrest the attention, compassion and creativity of the One Who Sees and Knows. He is imagining. Might we accept His invitation to join Him?

Reflection:

• What “nothingness” in your life do you need God to create something from?
• How does recognizing God’s power in creation strengthen your faith?
• What part of creation most reminds you of His greatness?

• Art: Creation Story Mural, by students from the inaugural Art and Faith Certificate II course at Nungalinya College in Casuarina, AUS. The mural is part of a larger collection of works that make up the Garden of Eden Art Trail at the college.
• Songs: “Another One” by Elevation Worship and “Eden” by Benjamin William Hastings