Help my Unbelief

 Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” 24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:23-24).



As humans, one of the key issues we deal with in our daily life is unbelief. Because of past experiences, usually, you find it difficult to believe in a person or some entity. Other times, your disbelief comes from the lack of knowledge of a particular situation. In general, you believe in something when it is tangible. That is, something you can touch, feel, smell, eat, etc. The Christian life is not based on emotions or feelings, it is based on faith. The author of the book of Hebrews says that without faith “it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). The Bible defines faith as “the confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1).

This encounter between Jesus, His disciples, and this father is interesting. Here is a man, who was desperately hoping that Jesus’ disciples could help, who was heartbroken over the state of his son. This encounter has some similarities with your life. Like this father, how many times have you gone to the Heavenly Father in prayer desperate to find an answer to a problem you are facing? You prayed and prayed, and no response. You asked the church to pray for your needs and no answer. You wait and wait, and no response. And, it is during these moments of desperation, you begin to feel doubt. You start to lose heart because you perceive that the Lord is not listening. It is in these moments of anguish that like this father, you need to cry out to God and said, I believe, help me in my unbelief. Jesus’ words were both a gentle reprimand and the reminder that man needed at that moment.

Occasionally, you need the same reminder. When unbelief comes into your life, you must cry out; "Lord, I believe, help me in my unbelief." The power of faith is the consequence of the power of God. All things are possible to Him; therefore, all things are possible to me, believing in Him. If we translate that into more abstract words, it just comes to the principle that the power of faith consists of it taking hold of the power of God. It is omnipotent because it knits us to Omnipotence. Faith is nothing in itself, but it is that which attaches us to God, and then His power flows into us. God hears our pleas. Jesus isn't saying that we can accomplish anything we want if we have enough faith; this isn't an endorsement of the Word of Faith teachings. True faith doesn't presume that God will do what we want but that God can do what He wants. We must believe and have faith that God will fulfill his purpose in our lives. May the Lord bless you and keep you always.

Pastor Dimas