Unbelief

I praise Jesus in the storm. Whatever my lot, I have been taught to say it is well with my soul. I sing because His eye is on the sparrow.

Deep down in my soul, I know that God will never leave me or forsake me. He is for me, not against me. He is working on my behalf for the good of His kingdom and for His glory. Knowing that, I can make it through just about anything. But, I have my moments of unbelief.

And if you search yourself, you may see that you have moments of unbelief, too.

You are not alone.

A man brought his son to Jesus, begging for mercy. His son was possessed and though the disciples had been unsuccessful in their attempts to cast out the demon. When the boy was brought close to Jesus, the demon cast the boy into a convulsion. Jesus asked the father, "How long has he been like this?"

"Since childhood," the man replied. "But if you can do anything, please take pity on us and help us."

" 'If you can?' " said Jesus. "Everything is possible for the one who believes."

And the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help my unbelief!"

Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and set the boy free of the demon's hold.

I pray this prayer all the time - "Lord, I believe; but help my unbelief." There are times when I want to trust Him, when I want to rest, when I want to let Him work. But I have to admit that there are just as many times when I can't see beyond beyond my own understanding. Thankfully, He hears those prayers and He answers them faithfully.

Where is your unbelief? Tell it to Jesus. Tell Him all about it and let Him show you how to believe.

On Friday, one of my dental caps/crowns broke. I was so frustrated. I made the mistake of dropping my dental coverage at the end of 2011 because I figured I would have a full-time job by this point and a new, more affordable dental plan. I went to the dentist in December to have my teeth checked before the new year and found out I needed a root canal - thank the Lord I went in and was able to have the procedure while still on insurance!! All my other teeth looked just fine - which is why I was shocked that this crown broke out of nowhere.

But, I chalked it up to "just my luck" and prayed that it wouldn't cost more than $700. I figured, "Of course this would happen during a time when we are already strapped financially. Oh well, thank God for financing." Actually, at first I really did pray that my crown would bind itself back together but when that didn't work, I shifted to just praying that we could work out a feasible payment plan for the new crown. I prayed we would have some wiggle room in our monthly budget for the payments.

What I did not pray was for God to just handle it. I prayed that we could handle it. And you know what?

He handled it anyway. :)

My dentist took a good look at my tooth and at my records and recognized that I had only had this crown since 2008 - a mere four years. A crown should last at least five years, and most should last 10-15. And you know what? Because it had been less than five years, my tooth is UNDER WARRANTY!!! Did you know dental work was warrantied? Neither did I, folks.

I knew in my heart I should have just prayed for a little miracle. But I didn't believe that God would come through. Yet He did anyway, to remind me to pray regardless of what I think the outcome will be and to praise Him when awesome things like this happen.

This little lesson applies to so much more than dental work and minor financial burdens. I hope it meant something to you in your own situation, because it was a fresh reminder to me that I don't always trust Him the way I claim to. He is always worthy, He is always trustworthy. And when we are afraid that He isn't, it's okay to let Him know.

And when He proves Himself to us (over and over again, as is His nature), we have to give Him glory. Even for little things like warranties on dental work. :)

*Bible story is from Mark 9. Italics and paraphrasing are mine.