Don't Play It Safe

I fell in love with Scripture while reading the Acts of the Apostles. One night I sat down with my Bible, determined that if I was going to be a real youth minister/Christian, I should read and know more of the Scriptures than I did. I can only assume it was the Holy Spirit who inspired me to start with Acts, because I was so captured I read it through in one sitting.

This account of the lame man being healed made for a compelling start. Saints Peter and John stroll into the temple for prayer one afternoon and notice a crippled beggar—probably not an uncommon sight. But when they approach the man, Saint Peter calls on the name of Jesus and boom, the man is healed. The whole thing seems pretty nonchalant considering it was a miracle.

This man, who had been lame from birth, has just been restored to “perfect health” and Saint Peter doesn’t see what all the fuss is about. He prayed with complete confidence in Christ. Saint Peter believed that Jesus was with him, wanted to heal the man, could heal him, and would. Talk about trust.

Too often when I pray, I play it safe. It may look like faith when I add “Your will be done” after voicing a petition, but it’s really me giving God an out. Just in case You don’t come through for me, Lord, I will console myself by saying that it must not have been Your will.

There can be faith in those prayers—the prayer that Jesus Himself prayed—but if I’m honest, I’m not praying it with a heart of surrender, but rather one full of fear.

Saint Peter’s faith in Jesus after the Resurrection is so unshakable that he is bewildered by their doubt. It’s so simple, he thinks. Jesus is the Messiah, and He can do anything—not the least of which is to heal this crippled man.

The real miracle here isn’t the physical healing, but that Jesus is who He says He is. That He sees our suffering and wants to heal us. Jesus wants to give us all the faith to believe in Him and to ask for miracles. Even Saint Peter needed the gift of faith. His faith, like all faith, was a virtue infused by the Holy Spirit. Let us pray today for a fuller, stronger faith and the courage to exercise our faith confidently.

Jesus is the Messiah, and He can do anything. // @thebethdavisClick to tweet

Today pray for faith, and then do not be afraid to ask for miracles.

Beth Davis is a lover of Jesus, an aunt to five beautiful humans, and a full time youth minister in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is passionate about winning the hearts of young people for Jesus through discipleship. You can find out more about her here.