How Many Times?

Scripture: Luke 9:37-43

37 When they came down off the mountain the next day, a big crowd was there to meet them. 38 A man called from out of the crowd, “Please, please, Teacher, take a look at my son. He’s my only child. 39 Often a spirit seizes him. Suddenly he’s screaming, thrown into convulsions, his mouth foaming. And then it beats him black-and-blue before it leaves. 40 I asked your disciples to deliver him but they couldn’t.” 41 Jesus said, “What a generation! No sense of God! No focus to your lives! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon slammed him to the ground and threw him into convulsions. Jesus stepped in, ordered the vile spirit gone, healed the boy, and handed him back to his father. 43 They all shook their heads in wonder, astonished at God’s greatness, God’s majestic greatness. (Luke 9:37-43 MSG)

Jesus was on the last lap of the race. He had begun to tell his disciples repeatedly that he would be killed soon. Luke 9:51, says, “He gathered up his courage and steeled himself for the journey to Jerusalem.” He had taken Peter, John, and James to a mountain-top where he was transformed into a being of light and talked with Moses and Elijah about the completion of his mission on earth in Jerusalem in a short while. During this profound experience, his main three guys fell asleep! Then he returned from the mountain and found his disciples unable to handle the same kind of situation he had recently sent them out with the authority to overcome.

“No sense of God!  No focus to your lives!  How many times do I have to go over these things?” His frustration wasn’t with the crowds and their needs, but with his disciples who had been trained and empowered to deal with these needs. There’s a reasonable expectation that we learn from our experiences and training and carry what we have learned into the next experiences and the next phase of our faith journey.

Don’t get guilty and condemned when Jesus gets frustrated with you! He loves you! He chose you! Just tell him you’re sorry, ask him to keep growing and changing you, and get on with it! The two things I value most about my faith journey are the privilege of God-Awareness (Sense of God) and the Purpose (Focus to my life) he has given me. I want to stay focused and live in God-Awareness!

Prayer:

Father, Thank you for choosing me, saving me, and giving me Kingdom-purpose for my life. Please help me to stay focused and God-aware every day. I want to learn from every experience and keep and apply what I’ve learned to the next thing! Thank you for being so patient with me! In Jesus’ Name!