Emails to God – Riding Jesus’ Coat Tails (Matthew 9:18-26)

18 While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.

20 Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21 She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”

22 Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment.

23 When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, 24 he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. 25 After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26 News of this spread through all that region.

Dear God, this is almost the Cliff’s Notes version of these two stories. Matthew streamlines them for us. He doesn’t go through the whole process of Jesus asking who touched him to be healed. He doesn’t tell us about the little girl’s mourners who try to get rid of him. He just gives us a glimpse of Jesus’ power, and how it is related to the involved people’s respective faith. Mark gives us more detail, but Matthew gives us the basics. I am glad we have access to both.

In this case, Matthew is showing us a man who is, indeed, the Messiah. He is showing us the raw power that flowed through Jesus’ human frame. He (Matthew) remembers it as being one of the first things that happened when he joined the group. That must have been amazing for Matthew. I can imagine that he would have felt excited about his decision to leave his tax collection business and join Jesus’ entourage.

Of course, there will come a time when Matthew will wonder if he had made the biggest mistake of his life—namely the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. But for now, this is exciting stuff. Jesus is obviously special, and Matthew gets to ride the wave a little.

Father, remind me of how special you are. Yes, there are times of struggle, and each day has a little bit of struggle for me now, but for the most part, this is a time when I can look at just about every area of my life and see your blessings. So help me to remember that. Help me to feel your smile and live into the love that you have for me today. Help me to worship you the way you deserve to be worshipped.

 

Emails to God – Jesus Calms the Storm (Matthew 8:23-27)

23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

26 He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

Dear God, verse 25 is interesting because they implore Jesus to save them, but then they are amazed in verse 27. I guess my question is, when they went to Jesus and asked him to save them, what did they expect him to do? Were they just looking for comforting words? Did they want him to just say, “Don’t worry, the boat will be fine.”? Did they want him to start bailing water? Or did they want him to make the storm go away. Given what someone asked him a few passages before, it would have been interesting if they had had the presence to say, “Lord, if you are willing, save us!” I also wonder how Jesus would have responded if they had said, “Jesus, we are afraid. What should we do?”

Jesus’ response to them is a little curious too, asking them why they are so afraid. What were they supposed to expect from their faith in this situation? Were they supposed to be at peace without asking for help? Were they supposed to just know that they would be okay? Were they supposed to believe that they already had the authority to rebuke the wind and waves themselves? I would think that he would commend them for coming to him for help, but instead he used it as an opportunity to point out a deficiency in their faith.

There is a great song called, “Sometimes He Calms the Storm,” by Scott Krippayne. The chorus says, “Sometimes He calms the storm with a whispered, ‘peace, be still,’ He can settle any sea, but it doesn’t mean he will. Sometimes He holds us close as the wind and waves go wild. Sometimes He calms the story, but other times he calms his child.” That song has always spoken to me because I don’t believe you are willing to calm every storm. Instead, you use the storm to grow me and my faith into something that couldn’t happen otherwise.

Father, help me to feel your peace. That is my own litmus test for how my faith is going—how is my peace. Right now, we are in a critical time of year at work. Help us to accomplish what you need for us to accomplish so that we might help those who need your help through us. Help us to draw people closer to you through our work. I feel like we might be missing something in this regard. So help us to do that. Help me to teach my children. Help me to love my wife. Help me to lead the staff at work so that all of us will bring your glory and honor through our lives and we won’t find ourselves screaming at you to save us, but we will instead find ourselves seeking your direction for us in the story.

 

Emails to God – Consider the Lillies of the Field… (Matthew 6:25-34)

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Dear God, I wonder if this was a new concept for the Jewish people to hear—God cares about the details. I can’t think of any other teaching before this in the Old Testament that indicated that every God-fearing person should look to you for the little provisions in their lives. Sure, you showed interested in special people in the Old Testament, but I don’t remember that everyone should have faith for these things.

I often struggle with how much to expect of you. As Rich Mullins put it once, “We all have it better than we deserve.” Is asking you for anything asking too much? Is it too much to ask for health for my children? Is it too much to ask for safe travel? Is it too much to ask for provision for the organization where I work so that we can serve our patients and our staff (including me) can be paid?

I think your answer to all of these questions is, “No, it is not too much to ask, but don’t get mad if, in My will and My wisdom I say no.” That is where we get hung up some times. We start expecting too much of you not realizing that it might fly in the face of the overall plan you have in mind. I always go back to the generations and generations of Israelites who lived in slavery in Egypt. I am sure that they prayed for freedom, but your answer was, “No, not yet.” You had a greater purpose, and their lives were part of the sacrifice for that purpose. I suppose that can be hard to hear for someone—that you need their life to be laid down for the greater good—but it’s what we sign up for when we submit ourselves to you and call you our Lord and Savior.

Father, help me to live in this peace. Help me to pray for all, and then accept all of your answers. Help me to pray with great faith and no expectations. Help me to truly believe that you can do anything you wish, whether naturally or supernaturally, but not expect you to do everything I want. And help me to completely submit my life to you.