“And Jesus said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and it they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Mark 16:15-18
Today’s Christian daily devotional
This is not a complaint, but a fact. Nothing has ever come easy in my life. Most of what I enjoy has only come after a lot of good, old-fashioned effort—or restraint!
I have to admit, that even my walk with God hasn’t been a walk in the park. But, early on I determined that if I were to live for God, I refused to do it halfway. So, I kept sticking with the truths I discovered in God’s Word, until I saw results. Many times those ‘results’ from my prayers and listening to the wisdom of God came after many months and sometimes, even years.
It’s not that I don’t believe in the possibility of miracles. When one reads the word of God, it’s apparent the Bible is rife with testimonies and examples of them. Many people I personally know have testified about miracles God has worked in their lives.
And, I have to admit, that as much as these stories build my faith; sometimes they also frustrated me to no end! Why did my prayers seem to take so long to answer? Would I ever see an instantaneous miracle in my life?
For example: When I discovered that I had osteoporosis at the age thirty-three, I prayed that God would heal me from this disabilitating disease. And He did. Slowly.
Here’s how my healing went down: My husband put me on a calcium rich diet that was chock-full of Greek yogurt, spinach and almond milk. John also convinced me to stop slurping down gallons of calcium-depleting Diet Coke. He had me on a rigorous workout regimen that included heavy weight baring exercises that up until this day, I have only seen old-school body builders do. These changes weren’t something that I was thrilled about, but I was ready to feel healthy again. So, I concluded that if this is what took to see my healing, then so be it. Of course, I also continued to pray every day that God would heal me.
I bet you’re wondering how it’s panned out for me. Currently, I am no longer taking any medication for osteoporosis. And after the last three yearly DEXA bone scans, the doctors are finding that my bones are slowly increasing in strength. My bones are no longer deteriorating, but growing. It has been four years since my diagnosis.
Do I believe God heals today? Absolutely. I know God answered my prayers for healing. But, He did it in a way that took some time and investment on my end. I’m sure this is not the kind of earthshattering news you wanted to hear, but sometimes miracles aren’t as instantaneous as we would like them to be.
I’m sharing this because I want to share another miracle from God; an instantaneous one.
This miracle happened for my husband, John. After years of beating his body to a pulp with sports, John’s shoulder was getting to the point where he was no longer comfortable just dealing with the pain.
Throughout the years of monitoring these old injuries, John’s MRI’s and X-ray’s displayed a significant amount of inflammation and arthritis.
But, because of the risks involved with surgery, John’s doctor only recommended going under the knife as a last option; only if the pain was unbearable.
John is quite familiar with the devastating effects of arthritis. This is only because John’s father has been suffering from arthritis for over forty years. So, he was quite aware of the fact that even if the surgeon cleared the loose debris, his pain would probably at best be reduced, not eliminated completely.
John is a personal trainer. Being active isn’t just a hobby it’s his life! Facing this hopeless diagnosis was discouraging to say the least. John was devastated.
The decision to have surgery wasn’t an easy one. But after much prayer, we decided to go forward.
“Hon, we must bathe your injury in prayer every night until your healing is complete.” I tried to encourage him.
John’s faith didn’t exactly match mine, but that was okay. I knew God could heal, even if it took four years.
And, what other option did we really have? Were we not going to pray? John was still going to get the surgery. Praying certainly couldn’t hurt matters.
Every night before John’s surgery date, we would cast out the spirit of arthritis and the spirit of fear. John and I would pray for an increase in faith and trust that God would work a miracle. We both started thanking God for being the kind of God that still works miracles today.
Regardless of his doubts, John humored me and went along with my nightly prayer routine.
Last week, I drove my husband to North Shore hospital for his surgery. After John was finished and wheeled back to his recovery room, the doctor brought back photos. The look on Dr. Koh’s face was utter shock.
“This is really strange. You had a significant amount of arthritis in your right shoulder. Look at these photos. These were taken during your surgery. There’s no evidence of arthritis; I couldn’t find a stich of it when I went in your shoulder. So, we just cleaned up the debris.”
Both of these stories were answers to prayer. I felt led to share this because many people pray and give up after a few days or even weeks.
Although we know that God’s timing isn’t usually in sync with our timing, it is important to remember when you rely on God, you really have nothing to lose. Let me encourage you to hold onto your faith. That faith can be the seed to your miracle, even if it takes a little time to see it.
“Dear Heavenly Father,
All throughout the Bible there are testimonies of the miracles of Jesus. Jesus Himself even said that greater works would His disciples do after He ascended into heaven.
Lord, I believe what Jesus said. You promised that your word would not return unto you void.
Help me to get rid of those nagging little doubts. If there’s something that is feeding my doubts that your word isn’t true, it isn’t from you.
In the name of Jesus I pray for a supernatural faith that increases every day until Jesus returns. Lord, give me faith like a child. I want the kind of faith that believes with you all things are possible. I don’t want these words to fall flat on my lips, but come from the depths of a heart that truly believes.
I cast out the spirit of unbelief from my life and open up the supernatural realm where miracles can happen. You said in your word that miracles couldn’t happen if there was doubt.
In Jesus name, bless me like you blessed the Biblical disciples that followed Jesus. I may not be able to see Him in the natural realm, but I see Him in the spirit. I follow Jesus and I am His disciple. Amen.”
Thank you for reading today’s Christian daily devotional on verses: Mark 16:15-18
Please check back and see what we have for you tomorrow!
Author: Julia Shalom Jordan
*I dedicate this devotional to Julie Waldon and Monica Unseld and Ben and Mary Andrews. May you never give up on the possibility that your miracle is around the corner!