Mark 5:25-34 "And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague."
This life doesn’t offer many free lunches or instant successes. Our journey on Planet Earth is mostly a series of trials, errors and hard work. Life is hard on this earth and living this life comes with many obstacles. Often success only comes on the heels of disappointment and failure. We live in a real world, with very few born into instant money, privilege and position.
For most of us, life is a day-to-day ‘bump and grind’ existence, with only a minuscule chance of winning the Lottery and living the fantasy life projected on TV commercials. But hard work has never hurt anyone and a little strain, stress and sweat is really quite healthy. The old adage, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again”, is good advice indeed.
-As a young man, Abraham Lincoln went to war a captain and returned a private. Afterwards, he was a failure as a businessman. As a lawyer in Springfield, he was too impractical and temperamental to be a success. He turned to politics and was defeated in his first try for the legislature, again defeated in his first attempt to be nominated for congress, defeated in his application to be commissioner of the General Land Office, defeated in the senatorial election of 1854, defeated in his efforts for the vice-presidency in 1856, and defeated in the senatorial election of 1858. At about that time, he wrote in a letter to a friend, "I am now the most miserable man living. If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would not be one cheerful face on the earth."
-Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He was subsequently defeated in every election for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62. He later wrote, "Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never - in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never, Never, Never, Never give up." (his capitals, mind you)
-Thomas Edison's teachers said he was "too stupid to learn anything." He was fired from his first two jobs for being "non-productive." As an inventor, Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When a reporter asked, "How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?" Edison replied, "I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps."
-Albert Einstein did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7. His parents thought he was "sub-normal," and one of his teachers described him as "mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams." He was expelled from school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School. He did eventually learn to speak and read. Even to do a little math.
-Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.
-R. H. Macy failed seven times before his store in New York City caught on.
-Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because "he lacked imagination and had no good ideas." He went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland. In fact, the proposed park was rejected by the city of Anaheim on the grounds that it would only attract riffraff.
-Charles Schultz had every cartoon he submitted rejected by his high school yearbook staff. Oh, and Walt Disney wouldn't hire him.
If we turn our mistakes and failures into stepping stones rather than stumbling blocks, the experiences we go through are reversed from negative to positive. We can learn from our mistakes and failures and not make those mistakes again. But if we take the low road of complaining, sulking and blaming people, it becomes a long-term aggravation that eats like a canker.
Matthew 12:34b "...for out of the abundance of the heart(soul/mind) the mouth speaketh." Listen to this poem and see where you stand:
ALL IN THE STATE OF MINDIf you think you’re beaten, you are; If you think you dare, you don’t.
If you’d like to win, but you think you can’t, It’s almost a cinch you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’ve lost, For out in the world you find,
Success begins with a fellow’s thoughts, It’s all in the state of mind.
If you think you’re outclassed, you are; You’ve got to think high to rise.
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go to the stronger or faster man; But soon or later the man who wins is the fellow who thinks he can.
-Paul stated emphatically in Philippians 4:13
“I can do all things through Christ, which strengthens me."
-Jesus said in Mark 9:23 “All things are possible to him that believes.”.
-Mark 10:27 says, “And Jesus looking upon them saith, With me it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”
-We must come to God, in simple faith, believing that Christ’s victory over Satan, death and Hell has purchased our freedom.
-The Bible says in Hebrews 2:14, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil."
-Jesus said in Matthew 7:7, 8 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you: For everyone that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened.”
Here are four things that most people are concerned about!
(1) PEACE OF MIND:
This comes through the knowledge of salvation, with the forgiveness of sins and the removing of guilt. Jesus said: “My peace I give unto you."
John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
Romans 5:1 "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ..."
Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
(2) PROTECTION OF ONE’S HOME & FAMILY:
Psalm 91:10 “There shall no evil befall you and no plague shall come nigh unto your dwelling."
The angels of God protect His people. Psalm 34:7 "The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them."
Psalm 34:19 “Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.”
(3) SECURITY FOR ONE’S JOB - The Bible tells us not to be concerned about tomorrow for He shall bless us with abundance. If we put Him first, He has promised to prosper and bless the work of our hands.
Matthew 6:33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
Zechariah 8:12 "For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things."
Isaiah 54:17 "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD."
(4) CONTINUED GOOD HEALTH - When Jesus died on the cross, He purchased our healing, for the Bible states:
Isaiah 53:5 “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."
Matthew 8:16, 17 “When the even was come, they brought unto Him many that were possessed with devils: and He cast out the spirits with His Word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”
The key is in not giving up.
-We must ask in prayer for our need.
-Seek His Word for an answer.
-Keep knocking till we receive. That’s real faith!
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