[Download a pdf of this entry along with a printable journal page for today HERE.]
40 DAYS OF LENT: DAY #33
WORD OF TODAY: John 11:21-22 (ESV)
21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
THOUGHTS ON THE WORD:
The reality of pain in our world hits us so squarely at times. The sorrow, the hurt, the struggle through all that is faced as we live our lives can be so very difficult to understand and endure.
Have you found yourself making a cry like Martha, saying “Lord, if you had been here?” Maybe you now feel as though our Lord is distant, beyond hearing, beyond helping?
Martha displays a belief, and a trust, and Truth in her words. And yet even so, she diminishes the power and authority of our Lord to her own understanding. We may feel as though our Lord is so far from us that He does not hear, or know, or care about the troubles of our day. But just as He did with Martha and Mary and Lazarus, He will do for us. He will come in His time to His glory, and will make all things new.
Today we consider how small we make Almighty God, and how distant we may think our Lord is from our lives. Do you ever say “Lord I know you would have done ....... if you’d had only been here?”, never doubting His power but only His presence? Consider today John 20:25 compared to John 20:27 and ask yourself was Jesus not there when Thomas doubted? Jesus would answer his every petition without any question from Thomas.
Where in your life might you be doubting, or minimizing, Almighty God’s presence and power and authority? How might you help others see God’s presence and power and authority?