“But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”” - Mark 9:22-24

Jesus was approached by a man who asked to have his son rid of a demon. He said to Jesus, “If you can…” There was unbelief in that request. Jesus chapped the man. “IF you can!? Bruh, I can do anything I want. You need to work on your lack of belief!” The man immediately responded. “I believe. Help my unbelief.” Jesus cast out the demon.

I can see my own requests sometimes falling short of the standard of belief. “Lord, can you help a brother out? I need the resources for this mission trip.” After reading this story, I can just hear Jesus saying, “Bro, I called you on this trip! Can I help you? Of course I can. Work on your unbelief!”

The truth is, boldness and confidence shows up when we are cheering on our team, encouraging our kids and grandkids, and trusting our armed forces to get the job done, but when it comes to expressing belief and faith in what God can do, we speak to Him like like a kid asking for a third cookie, like it is probably not going to happen.

When we ask the Lord for help in something, our faith should be evident in that request. We can’t demand God do something, but we should pray believing He can if He wants. And when we feel doubt creeping in about what God can do, we should pray the same thing this man did. “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.” That confesses faith, admits our weaknesses, and yields to the authority of God all at the same time. Let’s work on our belief when we address God. -Pastor Mike

BTW, I once dated a girl who left me for her beliefs. She believed I had money.