And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.” (Mark 9:29)
The disciples had tried to drive out the demon. They had watched Jesus many times before. It didn’t seem at the time like something they couldn’t do. Jesus had said, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed you can move mountains.”
Everyone was watching, too! What would they think if they weren’t able to get rid of this evil spirit? People might have thought less of them. They may have said, “You’re not really His disciples.” or “Look at you, you can’t do anything by yourself.” or “Where’s your faith?”.
Have you ever been afraid of what others would think about the amount of your faith?
So, humbly and privately they ask Jesus, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” (verse 28)
Fair question, wouldn’t you agree? Why couldn’t they perform what seemed to be a simple task? Why couldn’t they do what they had been trained to do? What they had apparently already been given power to do?
“This kind”, Jesus said, “can only come out by prayer.”
Now there are plenty of commentaries on this passage, but what we can’t escape is the missing ingredient. Prayer.
I need to ask you to consider this next part of the post. The first part was about the disciples. This part is about you.
What are you trying to do today that can only happen…with success…by prayer?
Oh, you may be very spiritual. You may have great Biblical knowledge. You may even know the pastor personally. (Like that’s a big deal or something!) You may be a committed follower of Christ. You may have the “good attendance” pin. You may have a testimony. You know, the kind where everyone says “ooh” when you share it. You may be an example for others to follow. You may even give God the glory for great things He hath done!
But…you see — this kind — the kind you’re dealing with now — can only come out by prayer!
Today — whatever it is — no matter what people might think or say — turn it over to the God who loves you beyond your ability to understand! Let Him know you need Him and Him alone. Tell Him you realize that apart from Him you can do nothing!
PRAY! Pray like you’ve never prayed before.
Then get out of His way and let Him do His work!
You may now want to read THIS POST on prayer — Hezekiah’s example of effective prayer.
Is there something BIG that I can pray with you about?
I have been a believer in the Lord since 1970. I have been a graphic designer and painter for the last 50 years and earned my living for a family of 5 kids and a wife doing artwork. I have been a fine art painter for the last 15 years showing in galleries in NC, GA and SC. I have been very frustrated about art sales and materials expenses and the art business in general. I felt led recently to turn everything over to the Lord regarding my life in art even willing to give it up totally and never paint again if that is what the Lord required. Perhaps I have not been doing what God wanted all these years. I recently changed my website title from La Point Fine Art to La Point Biblical Art. I feel that I should just do art even in an abstract way, about biblical themes. So here I am at this point and I guess I would like some Christian input about things so far. Any comments or suggestions are welcome.
Thanks, Jerry La Point (P.S. I just turned 80 years old)
Please pray for my family members that we all come close to God and live a life pleasing to God.
also my knee is still paining after the surgery and I have been advised another knee transplant to be able
to walk without limping. Despite all adversities I desire and long to be rooted in love and be of service to others.
Twitter: bryankr
says:
Have you heard the phrase " it's complicated"? That just begins to cover what I need help with! Short version: There is a new Supervisor at my office trying to make a name for himself, he is also a bully! The people I work for have instituted changes that make our jobs more difficult, but our union is helping. The Bully is trying to force us to accept the changes as being nothing major, anything that comes from it is our fault. Many of the things he does is against regulations and federal mandates, he puts us on paper as going against his supervision.
That is a very short version, and it doesn't really go into any real detail, but it gives you an idea of the kind of problem I face. The help I see as needing most is that I can continue doing my job without a misstep. Up to now, all of his write-ups have been thrown out for lack of validity, I just want to keep doing my job the way it should be! The pressure he is putting on can add up and have a very bad effect!
Thank you for your help!
I've been in a very similar situation. It's miserable. Praying for you.