The Power of an Everyday Christian

In Mark’s telling of this story of Jesus casting out demons from a man into a herd of pigs, we see details about what happened after the townspeople begged Jesus to leave their part of the country.

The people beg him to go. The man begs Jesus to take him along. What dramatically different responses to Jesus’ demonstration of power over evil.

However, the man who begs to go with Jesus does not get his wish. Jesus had a different task for him to do. The man is to go home to his family and tell them how much the Lord has done for him, and how good he has been to him.

I wonder if he was disappointed.

I think I would have been.

I wonder if the man even felt twinges of envy toward the followers in the boat who did get to accompany Jesus in person.

This interaction between the healed, freed man and Jesus reminds me how I can sometimes feel that the Christian life of others, perhaps lived out on the mission field overseas, or even in inner-city Canada where the needs seem so obvious—is somehow more valuable or effective than my life here in nice-ville, raising my family and quietly doing my work.

It can seem like living out of the Christian life that appears to be—on the surface at least—more colourful and dramatic is also more fruitful.

This passage hits the heart of that misconception.

The man went away and did exactly as Jesus told him to do, which was no more and no less than sharing with his circle of influence what the Lord had done for him and how good Jesus had been to him. And what happened? Everyone who heard was amazed. Amen.

Respond in Prayer

Father God, thank you for your demonstration of amazing power in this story. Thank you for what Jesus did for this man. Thank you for the man’s faithfulness in sharing with his family and friends what you did for him. Now, centuries later, this nameless man’s story is still having an impact. Help me to remember that you can make even the most ordinary of lives an extraordinary witness for you. Amen.

Karen Stiller