Fall Creek Christian Church

"While he was still speaking to her, a messenger arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. He told him, 'Your daughter is dead. There's no use troubling the teacher now.' But when Jesus had heard what had happened, he said to Jairus, 'Don't be afraid. Just have faith, and she will be healed.'" Luke 8:49-50   It was a riveting scene in the movie Breakthrough. A teenage boy, John Smith, was underwater for 15 minutes after falling through the ice. After an unlikely rescue, he was rushed to the emergency room where he was declared dead for 45 minutes...until his mother showed up. She went over to his corpse and began to pray over him. Every medical team member watching had that "it's no use" look on their face. Her tearful, passionate cries to God for his life to return was interrupted only by the beep that returned to the still attached heart monitor.   Surely Jairus' knees buckled when word of his daughter's

  "At that time I pleaded with the Lord and said,'O Sovereign Lord, you have only begun to show your greatness and the strength of your hand to me, your servant. Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform such great and mighty deeds as you do? Please let me cross the Jordan to see the wonderful land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon mountains. But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he would not listen to me.' 'That's enough!' he declared. 'Speak of it no more.'  Deuteronomy 3:23-26 Having a beautiful wife, four daughters and now a granddaughter, I have been powerless in the face of the many long and passionate "Ple-e-e-e-eases" over the years. I would gruffly choke out a "No" every once in awhile, but we were all in on the little secret. Just keep asking. Just keep sounding cute and desperate and Dad would eventually buckle. If Mom were with me on the "no," it would stand.

"This is my command -- be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:1-11 Chants of "You can do it!" followed by "Jump! Jump! Jump!" finally emboldened the timid young man to step off the rock wall into the river below. To this day, I can still hear the shouts and the splash.  Popping up out of the water, his expression was unforgettable. Eyes wide. Grinning ear to ear. Arm raised. He was victorious! He had faced down a fear and won. Everyone literally felt the collapse of the unseen wall that had made his life small. This was a triumph that proved to be a watershed moment in his life. I can only imagine the adrenaline release in Joshua when the Lord looked him in the eye and said, "the time has come for you to lead these people." It's one thing to be groomed for a task, but it's a completely different thing to enter into it. God knew that. He knew where

"... 'Aaron and Miriam!' he (God) called, and they stepped forward. And the Lord said to them,'Now listen to what I say: ... Of all my house, he (Moses) is the one I trust. ... He sees the Lord as he is. So why were you not afraid to criticize my servant Moses?' ..."  Numbers 12 As a soccer family for many years, I've seen youth sports bring out the worst in parents, including me. There is some sort of validation found in us parents whose children perform well. Likewise, there is some sort of diminishing of significance if one's child doesn't. This warped reality can lead to the most vicious and visceral criticizing imaginable. Coaches are maligned. Referees are met with screamed vitriol. Children fear the ride home from the game where they are berated for failure. They are taught to criticize teammates, coaches and referees with disdain. What ever happened to fun?  Moses' brother and sister got stuck on the criticism crazy train. The

"... 'What is your request?' he asked. They replied, 'When you sit on your glorious throne, we want to sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.' ... 'What do you want me to do for you?' Jesus asked. 'My Rabbi,' the blind man said, 'I want to see!'" Mark 10:35-52  There are some "asks" I wish I wouldn't have made. Likewise, there are others I wish I would have made. What about you? For example, I wish I never would have asked to take a turn trying to use a stand up paddle board. I nearly ripped off my fingernail and was stalked by a rather large and intimidating barracuda. On the other hand, I wish I would have asked someone about the wisdom of some of my financial decisions before I made them. Hmm...It's truly remarkable to consider the impact on the trajectory of our lives that our asks and non-asks have had. In our story for the day, James and John asked Jesus if they could ha