Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

Have you ever been so heavily burdened by a need that you were unable to put your thoughts together to pray? One of the most impactful stories to me in Matthew 9 is the story of the woman with the bleeding disorder that said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” Jesus turned and saw her and said, “Take heart, daughter, your faith has healed you.” We must remember there were many people in the synagogues as Jesus was traveling about. I’m sure there were hands touching, reaching, and people bending and stretching out to Him. The significance of this particular woman was that she only had to acknowledge his power within herself and He knew immediately her thoughts and her faith.

Reflection:

• In Matthew 17: 20-21, God tells us, “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."
• Look up what a mustard seed looks like and share this with your family (or maybe you have one in your pantry). Think about how small that is and talk about how powerful faith is in its smallest form, that the woman only had to think about how much she believed God would help her and so He did.
• Prayer: God, thank You for the story of the woman in today’s devotion. God, if You work on our behalf when You know our thoughts are that of our belief in You, how much more You can do for us when we confess our belief with our lips to others? God, help us to be bold in our faith acknowledging the power You have to meet our every need. Amen.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Family Application: Matthew 9

Author: Anna Overstreet

Matthew 9 is full of famous stories where Jesus performed one miracle after another for sick and hurting people. If Jesus were to ever fill out a job application, His references listed would have quite the stories to tell!

I want to focus on verse 9:24 today. It says, “Leave,” he said, “because the girl is not dead but asleep.” And they laughed at him.”

Wow. Can you imagine laughing at Jesus? He could have easily told everyone who laughed at Him what all He had just accomplished and was about to do for this girl. He could have preached scriptures to them. He could have told them a million different truths about who He was and what He could do. He could have told them that the God of the entire universe is His Father! He could have called an army of angels right there, but He didn’t! He simply went about His work, healing the one He came for that day. This sets a perfect example for us. You see, I know there have been and will be times when others will laugh at you for your faith in Jesus. They will mock you and say all sorts of mean things about whatever task God has called you to do. During those times, I want you to remember this story. Remember how Jesus simply kept about His work and how it literally saved the life of that girl? Verse 25 says, “After the crowd has been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.” He didn’t waste time on the haters. He had one goal in mind, which was to help the girl who couldn’t help herself. When others say mean words and laugh at you for following Jesus, keep moving forward and rush past them to the ones who need the Good News of Christ!

• Prayer: Dear Lord, sometimes I get mad or sad when others laugh at me. It makes me feel angry and even embarrassed. Help me to be strong when others mock me for doing Your will. Thank you for setting the perfect example of what to do when God calls us to do big things for others in Your Holy Name. You are the One we are to obey and follow, no matter who laughs at us. Amen.