Mark 6

For those of you that might be just joining me, I'll let you know, I am reading and journaling through Mark over the holidays and I'm hoping you'll join me in doing the same. I really appreciate the accountability.
I will be taking a 2 day blog break on the 25th and 26th, so you have time to catch up if you're behind.

My random thoughts on Mark 6
V.1-6 Faith is a big deal. These people in Jesus home town did not see him like others did and they lacked faith. To them Jesus was just too familiar, he'd just always been around, part of their life. And it seems that because of his familiarity to them he was nothing too special, and so they didn't have faith in him. As I am writing this I am noticing something similar between the people in Jesus home town and my experience from a Christan upbringing and this predominately Christian town. When one has grown up in a Christian home the freshness and excitement of Jesus is often missing, he's just always been there. I hear it all the time from young people when talking about their testimonies, "My testimony is boring, I grew-up in a Christian home, I asked Jesus into my heart when I was 3, I never did anything really bad.blah blah blah..." The realization of Jesus' power is missing, the realization and expectation of a miracle is missing. There is nothing wrong with knowing Jesus from child up but I guess the question is - How do we keep being captivated anew with radical faith in a "Jesus bubble", where Jesus is familiar and has always been there? How do you create an expectant faith filled atmosphere as we raise our kids? (I'll have to explore this father in a future blog post)
V. 34 Jesus has compassion on them. I love these words about Jesus.
V. 46 Jesus need to get with his father again and so he makes the time for it.
V. 48 Funny that Jesus was about to pass by them, wasn't he heading to them? Maybe he was playing a joke on them?
V. 56 "All who touched him were healed." Amazing, Jesus these stories are amazing, I want to see action like this in our time too. There are so many sick and hurting people in our day too, if we have faith can these events take place in our time? Are they happening? Where? How? Lord help me to have faith. Increase the healing in our day.

Mark 5

V. 17 Jesus was just too much for them to Handle, they were afraid of what they didn't understand about the situation, so they send him away. I wonder if sometimes we do the same, Jesus is doing something amazing but it is way to different or scary for us so we have a choice to distance ourselves from him or follow him one step at a time in faith.
V. 19-20 "Go home to your family and tell them." Jesus gives the man his mission, to reach him family and home town, as opposed to going to far and distant places. I think this is an encouragement for people who don't feel God's call to distant places, but to stay near their family and neighborhood to be the missionary right where they are.
V. 43 I wonder why Jesus didn't want anyone to know what happened? and I always find I interesting that despite his wishes the story ended up being written in the most popular book of all time(also God's own word), still being read 2000+ years after it happened. Obviously he didn't really want it to be secret forever.

I like the story from 21-43. One of the reasons I like it is because it shows a day in the life of Jesus more than other stories seem to. Jesus is on the way to one miracle and another one "happens" on the way. I thought "happens" was a strange word to use for a miracle but it was the best word I could think of because from everyone but the woman and God's eyes it just suddenly happens. This day in the life of Jesus is filled with 2 kinds of people, those with faith and those without faith. Each persons experience with Jesus hinged on if they had faith or not. Because of faith Jairus got his daughter back, the woman stopped bleeding and was freed from her suffering, Peter, James and John got to witness an amazing miracle. because of their lack of faith the others had fear and sorrow, others ignored them, Jesus ignored them and left them out of the amazing things he was about to do, they did not witness a miracle or experience one themselves.
After reading this story I feel challenged to have faith, reminded to just believe Jesus will do what he says he can do and will be who he says he will be.

Can Pinky Come Alive?

The other morning as one of my daughters and I were getting our breakfast, I was casually informed by her, "Last night I asked God if Pinky could come alive." Then she said "I don't think he will do it but I know he can." Pinky is a giant stuffed pink bear. It is amazing to observe the faith of a child. She knows she can talk to God about anything, ask Him for anything and if He says "no" that it makes no difference He is still God of all things. She increases my faith. No wonder Jesus tells us to become like little children. I want to be like a child?

4 kitties and an evening of perfect weather

Last Wednesday at breakfast Ariel told me that she had been listening to Jesus and when she had asked him when our stray cat would have babies(she was pregnant at the time) he said Friday. She then said that "Daddy always says that when I hear from God I should tell him. and if I don't know if it was just me or really God then he can help me know.... so was that God or just me?" she asks. I'm firstly amazed/excited that she has been communicating with God like that and then to answer her question I am wanting to say God but I don't know either so I tell her that we'll have to wait and see on Friday. Then as we are talking Ariel challenges me to ask God if it will rain on Friday or not because at that time I was wondering about the weather for the African Children's Choir that was planned for out doors. So I paused for a moment and to do that, I sensed God telling me that it will all be fine no matter the weather and after that I never worried once about the weather. When Friday came I had, what i can only explain as, a Spirit directed confidence to keep the concert out doors even though the forecast said rain and thunder storms. The Concert had perfect weather, really amazing. Then when we got home from the concert we all went looking for Milkshake the stray cat. and sure enough we found her under the stairs with 4 brand new baby kitties. I looked at Ariel, and I could tell she knew what this meant but I asked her anyway, "Do you remember what God told you?" she said "Yes". We have all been thrilled with God's reality this past weekend.... God still speaks.