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I really don’t like to admit that there are times that I struggle with doubt.  But I do.  I don’t so much doubt the existence of God or whether or not Jesus is God; I really do believe that, but I sometimes find myself questing whether or not He cares about me.  It’s usually when I’m not enjoying my circumstances; when things aren’t the way I want them to be that the pity party starts. 

There is a really interesting account in Mark 9.  This father whose son has been possessed by a demon since he was young approaches Jesus.  The father says that the disciples tried to cast out the demon, but they couldn’t.  He says to Jesus, “If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.”  Jesus replies, “If you can?  Everything is possible for him who believes.”  Then the father responds in a way that I automatically relate to, but then ask, “Well, what does that mean?”  He says, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.”

How can you believe something and not believe something at the same time?  I mean either you do believe or you don’t…right?  I think perhaps if we put ourselves in the father’s shoes we might be able to understand where he’s coming from.  The Bible says that the boy has been possessed since he was a small boy and that often the demon tried to kill the boy by throwing him into the water or into fire.  Imagine that.  Imagine being a father and watching your child go through that…over and over again.  And then here come some men supposedly sent by God who can’t do anything about it.  I have to wonder if the unbelief that the man is speaking of isn’t directed toward the existence of God, but whether or not He cares about what is going on.   Have you ever been there?  I know I have.  Now compared to the situation in this story my circumstances can seem somewhat trivial, but I can relate. 

I can assure you that God is here, and God does care.  One of the names for Jesus is “Emanuel.”  It means, “God with us.”  Not only is God real, but He is with us, and He genuinely cares.  So much that he often puts us in situations that only He can handle so that we will begin to only have faith in Him.   See the man saw that it was Jesus who drove out the demon.  I’m sure that man went home believing that Jesus was God and that He did care about him.  The most loving thing God can do is put us in situations where we have no other choice but to trust.  These situations produce faith. Faith that Jesus is who He says He is and that He can do what He says He can do because it is only by faith that anything and everything is possible.