Have Faith

"While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official's house arrived and said, 'Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?' Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, 'Do not be afraid; just have faith.' " - Mark 5:35-36

"'Cause I gotta have faith..." - George Michael

Imagine, for a minute, that your child is sick. Really sick. So sick that you're willing to do anything to help them feel better. Now imagine you think you've found the cure - only to arrive home and find your child has succumbed to the sickness before you could deliver the cure.

Heartbreaking, to say the least.

And this is exactly how the synagogue official felt. His daughter is sick, he finds Jesus, convinces him to come with, only to arrive home and find out his daughter has already died. What dispair, what raw emotions he must have felt - to not only feel like he missed his only opportunity to save his daughter, but that he wasn't by her side during her last moments.

Thankfully, the cure he's brought with is no ordinary medicine. In fact, it's so potent death can't keep it from working.

It's called faith. Faith is (spoiler alert) what brings this little girl back to life. Faith is what keeps Christ's message going through two millenia. Faith is what keeps us believing when it feels like the world is against us. Faith is what sustains us when we long for a sign from God, to hear God's voice, to see God's glory.

And faith is what brings us to everlasting life. In one way or another, we too will be like the synagogue official's daughter. We will be brought back to life someday with Christ. And on that great day, we will fully understand how just a little faith can move mountains. How a little faith can heal us. How a little faith will bring us into God's kingdom.

Forever.