August 19

Today’s Reading - Mark 2:1-12

Thought:

Faith — that is the word used to describe this paralytic man and those who brought him to Jesus. But their faith did not consist only of a belief that Jesus could heal the man. No, it went far beyond that. Think about all the effort that was involved in getting their friend to Jesus. They had to find their way through the crowds to get to the house, get themselves and their paralyzed friend onto the roof, remove a section of the roof, fashion a way to lower the man into the house, and accomplish the task of placing the man in the presence of Jesus. The proof of their faith was found in the great effort that they put forth in coming to Jesus. In a similar way, Christ is able to make us whole and cleanse us of our sins, but we must be willing to put forth the effort to come to Him. The effort itself doesn’t save us but it does bring us into the presence of the One that can! May God help us to have a faith that puts forth the effort.

What are the things that we do to come to Jesus?