Jesus Heals a Demon-Possessed Boy (Matthew 17:14-21)
"When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. "Lord, have mercy on my son," he said "He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him."
"You unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "How long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.." Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" He replied, "Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
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Ok. Let's re-read this one part:
"Truly I tell you, if you have little faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
-Jesus
Think about this. Jesus is saying to His disciples You can take this mountain; this huge mountain that's mounted to the ground, and tell it to move from one place to another if you have faith as small as a mustard seed.
Now the Bible says that the mustard seed is the SMALLEST seed available.
And that's all the faith that's needed to do something as miraculous as moving a gigantic mountain.
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As I read this, I was instantly convicted.
How do miracles, people getting saved, people believing, and healings happen?
It takes someone who has faith to ask the Lord to do something awesome.
And the Bible says that Faith the size of a mustard seed can do miraculous things.
Like move a mountain.
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Galatians 1:10 tells us:
"Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ."
--> The Lord has been really been teaching me about not caring about what others think. When it comes to witnessing, it can be tough. If you are at school, you are in front of your piers. You stand in front of people who judge you for taking a step out of the crowd, and sometimes we let fear get the best of us. Correction: Sometimes I let the fear get the best of me. But the Lord has been teaching me that i need to live everyday in missions as it's my last day here on Earth. He wants me to treat each day as if it's my last chance to do something for His kingdom. He has been challenging me with Matthew 17:14-21...telling me that if I had the faith as small as a mustard seed and didn't care what other people thought (Galatians 1:10) I could be doing so much more for His kingdom.
And He's right...
I could.
So the other day, I was walking by this woman in the union building at my school who had a brace on her leg. I walked right past her and didn't think much of it until the Spirit stopped me dead in my tracks. The Lord told me, "Pray for her. Pray for her leg." I argued in my head, saying "God. I already walked past her, and I'm kind of on my way somewhere." As I started/continued walking, guilt and conviction started to overwhelmed me, ("Laura, if you had faith as small as a mustard seed...") and I had no choice other than to turn back around. I introduced myself... (now mind you, there is a HUGE group of students by us. Some were watching/had their eye on us) and she let me pray for her. I was so excited and I was hoping that her brace would fall off and there would be a sweet healing, but when I got done she said it didn't feel any different and so I thanked her for letting me pray for her, invited her to Chi Alpha, and walked away. I was slightly disappointed. I asked God why she wasn't instantly healed, and the Lord said, "Laura, you obeyed Me. You planted the seed and prayed for her. You did what I asked you to do. Don't get discouraged, but instead, have faith and keep praying for her that she will be healed. Have faith. As small as a mustard seed...Also. Take joy in obeying me. I love you, Laura."
I was stunned, and instantly found a joy. I found such a joy that it took my everything not to bust a dance move in the parking lot. I found such a beautiful and overwhelming joy in obeying what the Lord asked me to do. Even though nothing instantly happened physically, I conquered the fear of what people thought around me and planted a seed. And that's exactly what the Lord wanted me to do.
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So my advice? Next time you feel that the Lord is asking you to witness to someone or to pray for them, review these verses. All that's going to mater when you get into Heaven is Loving Jesus and working for Him to advance His kingdom.
Remember, if You don't care what others think (easier said then done; took me 19 years) and if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, YOU can tell a mountain "Move from here to there" and it will move. You may not move an Earth mountain, but you could move a big road block mountain in someone's heart.
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I then listened to a song called "It's my joy to Love" and the lyrics actually talking about finding a joy in obeying. And boy, could relate to the song.
http://ihopkcmusic.bandcamp.com/track/its-my-joy-to-love
