Atmosphere for Miracles~

Walking by faith, trusting God for a miracle is such a crucial time in a believer’s life. We have been entrusted by our Father with an opportunity to be a conduit of the manifestation of something that will challenge logic and defy the odds; maybe even defy nature and scientific evidence. It takes all our strength and focus to maintain the proper posture of heart and frame of mind for God to operate on our behalf while we wait on the performance of that which has been promised (Luke 1:45). I’m sure many of us can bear witness that some things in our lives were forfeited by just not being able to wait on God and trust the power of His word to fulfill itself. We’re told to speak in faith those things God has promised; but with all honesty, I say to myself “Lord, you see what they did to Joseph…”; seriously, was that the ONLY route to palace? 🙂 Everyone doesn’t celebrate the favor and promise spoken over our lives, and some will publicly smile but privately scoff; worst yet, plot against you. The enemy may form the weapon, but it can’t work if we refuse to lose heart.

As I’ve shared in some of my previous writings we must be mindful of who we connect with, and who we allow to speak into our circumstances in the rough seasons of our lives. In my life there has been nothing more deadly to the seed of faith than doubt-filled words during challenging seasons. Fighting the temptation to doubt is difficult enough as we wait; having to do this while taking in the wrong things or entertaining the wrong connections makes this almost impossible. Once those words of faith and confession are released, the enemy gets to work, trying to thwart the plan and purpose of God in our lives. Any words he can plant in our thoughts have the power to grow right alongside God’s promise and choke out the seed of faith needed to maintain our firm position and footing as we look to God for the demonstration of His word.

I was given an even stronger affirmation of this truth while listening to a dynamic teaching from Dr. Cynthia James. She was teaching on what she called “Comfort Food” in the scriptures. For her, and for many believers, there are passages and stories that we know nearly by heart; they undergird our faith, and give us courage and hope. The passage she taught on was the story of the miracle of healing experienced by the woman with the issue of blood, found in Mark chapter 5. Yet this miraculous healing occurs right in the midst of the story of Jairus seeking Jesus for his daughter who was deathly ill also; this is the story I was led to reflect on. While Jesus, a few selected disciples, and Jairus were making their way through the crowds headed to see about Jairus’s daughter, news was brought to him that his daughter had died. Jesus heard, yet spoke comfort to Jairus in verse 36, “Do not be afraid; only believe.” When they arrived at Jairus’s home, there were many people mourning with his family. One account of the story even notes there was loud wailing; The Holy Spirit began to have me picture and imagine the somber sights and sounds of this event. She was a young child, only twelve years old, and I can imagine the mother at this point was probably inconsolable and stricken with grief…  I know I would have been devastated. Yet the Holy Spirit directed me to focus on Jesus’s response; it really increased my faith and reinforced the “It is well” stance that God has been focusing on with my recent writings. Jesus entered the crowd and began the process of changing the atmosphere for Jairus and his wife. Mark 5:39-40 says,

When He came in, He said to them, “Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping.” And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.

Dr. James said while teaching, “Stop calling things dead that God has not called dead.” I listened, amazed by God… The Holy Spirit had just led me to write and publish that very truth in my previous blog about the Shunammite Woman. As I continued reading the passage above, I focused in on their response to Jesus.  They ridiculed Him… That word can also be read as “mocked”, “laughed at”, or “made fun of”. They made fun of Jesus… Wow. The Holy Spirit comforted me with this thought; “if they could mock Jesus and they had already heard of many of the miracles He had performed?” Indeed, I responded… There’s no getting around this. If God speaks life over your dead thing and you confess life over your dead thing, you can expect to be mocked; whether it’s by others or your own mind wrestling with what you see juxtaposed against what you’ve said. But I was even more blessed by Jesus’s responsive action. He put them out… This is what I’d like us to consider as reinforcement of the truths He has shared with us in the previous writings.

Consider This: Establishing the right posture for God to operate in our lives is critical; not necessarily for Him to work, but for us to have the faith to believe. If the atmosphere around us isn’t conducive to the level of faith we need in order to receive from the Lord, we need to put some things, and maybe some people, “out”. We need to take inventory of our lives and connections; we must evaluate our daily “intake” or whatever we’re partaking in. We must assess what distracts and detracts from the word of faith and take decisive action to change it. We often think we need support, but truth of the matter is we don’t need it as much as we presume. Even in this situation, Jesus could have performed the miracle in public for all to see, it would have shut their mouths quickly and permanently. But He didn’t; He took in a select few, raised the little girl, and even told Jairus and his wife not to tell anyone what He had just done for them. We may understand that our circumstances are well-known. We may know folks have disbursed and are discussing our “misconception” of a dead thing that we’ve said is just “sleeping”. Close the door behind you, and wait patiently on the Lord to wake your sleeping promise. When He does, keep going and keep growing. No explanations needed…