Made for This MomentSample

MADE FOR THIS MOMENT: JAIRUS

Moments of Desperation

WARM-UP

“Be still and know that I am God…” Psalms 46:10

ON THE PITCH

My wife and I sat next to our daughter’s bed in the ICU. We had rushed from across the country to be with her after the accident. Her head was shaved; a drain came out of her skull to relieve the pressure from the trauma. We prayed…desperately.

Have you ever been desperate? You know, the hopeless sense that a moment is impossible?

Jairus was the father and synagogue leader that humbled himself to beg Jesus to heal his dying daughter. The Word tells us that Jairus pleaded “over and over” for Jesus to come. Jairus was desperate. He did everything he could to save his child. He had fought through the crowds to get to Jesus, got his attention, gained his commitment, turned to rush back, and then watched as Jesus got pulled into someone else’s emergency. It’s almost like God said, “Jairus, you are not making this happen. I am…and I’ve got it!”

I would understand if Jairus was frustrated. I know what it was like to be hours away with a child in emergency surgery and not feel in control. But God had prepared us by putting Psalms 46:10 on our hearts years before. His command to “be still” tells us we are not in control. He is. Jesus offered similar encouragement to Jairus, “Don’t yield to fear. All you need to do is to keep on believing” (Mark 5:36). In his believing, Jairus started putting one foot in front of the other, each a tiny step of faith, and brought Jesus to his (then) dead daughter, where life over death prevailed!

God tends to do things in ways we know could not have happened without Him. If Jairus got Jesus to his daughter before she died, would her healing have affected so many? If we were home to direct the care of our daughter, would people have easily seen God in her crisis and in her story of eventually becoming a doctor?

What is something that you are desperate for? What do you need to “be still” about and let God take over? As we reflect on this story of a father’s love for his daughter, let’s learn from Jairus. Let’s go to Jesus. Let’s be still. Let’s believe. And let’s keep taking steps of faith!

EXTRA TIME

Entire story of Jairus: Mark 5:22-43

PRAYER

God help me to remember that you are the one I can turn to for safety. You are the one I can turn to for strength. You are the one that holds me in the palm of your hand. So, when I fear, when I am weak, when I need comfort, remind me, Lord, to just…be…still. To be in your presence and let you fill me with courage, give me strength, and inspire me to move as you would have me move. Amen.