June 4, 2026
Thursday, June 4
We need grit to follow Jesus, because sometimes His followers fail. We saw yesterday that a man with a demon-possessed son could get no help from the disciples. Their failure didn’t mean Jesus was powerless, or uncaring. It was their failure, not His. But what would Jesus do next? The story continues in Mark 9:
20And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. 21And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” 23And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” 24Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
The second habit for walking in the dark is to honestly ask God for help. Verse 24 contains one of the most beautiful prayers ever prayed. He’s saying, “I need for you to heal my son, Lord. But I also need for you to change my heart.” Most of us weren’t taught to pray that way. We were taught a simple doctrine of prayer: “Bring your problems to God, and He will fix them.” No one tells us that God sometimes says no. No one tells us that we should rejoice when the answer is no. Why would we rejoice? Because if God gave us everything we asked for, it would mean we were the boss of Him, not the other way around. It would mean He needs us to tell Him what to do. A god like that can’t save us. But a God who knows all things, and loves us enough to always do what’s best, will sometimes tell us no. I’ve shared many times a quote I first heard from Tim Keller: “God always answers every prayer the way we would if we knew what He knows.”
We weren’t taught the second half of that prayer, either: “Change me, Lord.” Instead, we are taught to try really hard to change. How is that working out for you? I’ve tried and tried to be more like Jesus, and I fail more often than I succeed. But when I am honest with God and myself, when I confess my sins and pray for God to change me in specific ways, that’s when I see real growth. Do you have a list of sins, bad habits, and character deficits that you are praying to the Lord about on a regular basis? Can you be as honest with God (and yourself) as this desperate father was?
“Father, why would I ever pretend to be more righteous than I am? You know the truth. Teach me to be honest with you, to pray for the deficits in my character daily. I do believe, Lord, but help my unbelief. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Senior Pastor
First Baptist Conroe
More from Pastor Jeff at his website: jeffbergerwriting.com
