Friday, May 22
Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?
—Mark 5:35
But, as they were on their way, some people from the leader’s house met them and announced that the daughter had died. Jesus intervened and told the father, “Do not fear, only believe.” Then Jesus led the rest of the way to the house.
Upon arrival
they saw that there were many people mourning loudly. Jesus told them all, “Why
do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.” And then
he proved his point by telling the little girl to get up, and get up she
did.
Go back for a moment, to the instant in which the father, on
the road with Jesus, was told that his daughter had died. How many times have
you in your life faced moments of defeat, of despair? Perhaps not as tragic as
this one, but nonetheless, times when you thought it was all over, you had lost
or failed or been defeated?
Jesus encourages us to continue to
hope, to believe, to keep on going. With God on our side, there is always hope.
During World War II, Winston Churchill famously said, “Never, never, never give
up.” And Jesus says to us, right now, “Do not fear, only believe.”
Lord God, give me the faith to have hope, always. Amen.
This Signpost originally appeared on explorefaith in 2007.