And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.” 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 20 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”—Matthew 17:14-21
I have often wondered (apparently along with the disciples) 😀why they could not cast out this demon. Putting “me” in their place, it was probably because they, like me, had yet to be dissuaded of their own importance. Their confidence was divided.
I can so relate! It is so hard for me to take “me”...my talents, my importance...out of the equation. Beloved...without God, we can do nothing good! Our sufficiency for all we face is from Him. To walk in those works that He prepared beforehand for us takes a heart completely surrendered to Him.
It is difficult for me to know what that looks like practically, but what I said earlier about removing myself from the equation has helped. Kudos to my husband for that advice.
What I want in a given situation is not important...what God wants is. Whatever God-given talents I may or may not possess are likewise not important. God can do anything. His arm, as the Scriptures tell us, is not short. There is nothing impossible for God.
Removing me from the picture leaves only Jesus and what He wants for my life in that moment. The equation is thus simplified. The cacophony of my clamoring flesh is silenced. I am at peace. The needs of others and the will of my God are now obvious. My heart is His, and He can then work in me and through me for HIS good pleasure. This song by Michael Smith comes to mind...
Lord I give You my heart
I give You my soul
I live for You alone
Every breath that I take
Every moment I'm awake
Lord have Your way in me
This is my desire, to honour You
Lord with all my heart I worship You
all I have within me
I give You praise
all that I adore is in You.
How utterly freeing it is to know that this life is not about you and it is not about me. It is about Him! Lord...I give You my heart...Have Your way in me today and every day.
