THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EVENTS OF THE LORD

PRAISE THE LORD!
If you saw the devotional for March 9th, 2020, then you read about 
how my wife and I were awaiting the decision regarding a pill to be 
included in her treatment for cancer. Four weeks before, this pill 
was going to be an “out of pocket” cost for us of $100,000.00. The 
day before the devotional we were notified that our “out of pocket” 
cost will now be $0.00! How awesome is that? Another example of how 
God loves and cares for those in His family. 
UPDATE: 
    The pill started causing liver problems so my wife had to stop 
    taking it or it would cause liver failure. But you know what, 
    this was not a surprise for the Lord and He had a plan already 
    in place. She was entered into a clinical trial with a new med, 
    and when the first scan was taken, the tumor in her lung had 
    been reduced by 75%. The next scan showed it had disappeared 
    completely! In addition her fatigue and nausea has lessened. 
    As of this devotional, she has had some afib issues which may 
    be related to her treatment, but her oncologist and cardiologist 
    are collaborating and we know God has another plan in place 
    because He is at work even when we do not what lies ahead.

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Then He climbed into the boat with them and the wind died down.
They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about 
the loaves; their hearts were hardened.”
(Mark 6:51-52)

MEDITATION:
It is easy to get so focused on an event that the significance 
is lost. Take Christmas, for example. Every December the challenge 
is to keep the significance in front of the event. Valuable lessons 
are lost if we don’t.

We can become so focused on what we are going to get for someone,
or what we are going to receive from someone, that we lose sight 
of the significance of Christmas. We lose sight of the fact that 
God gave us the greatest gift we could ever receive (Jesus’ birth); 
nothing is more important than His gift to us.

That is what happened to the disciples at the feeding of the 5,000.
They participated in the miracle and knew the event, but not its 
significance.

Immediately after the feeding of the 5,000 Jesus sent His disciples 
to Bethsaida by boat.
    “Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat
     and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed 
     the crowd.” (Mark 6:45)

Later, when the wind was against them and they were straining 
at the oars, they saw the remarkable sight of Jesus walking on 
the water. At first they thought it was a ghost. Jesus calmed 
them, and climbed into the boat and the wind died down.

Notice verses 51 and 52:
    “They were completely amazed, 
     for they had not understood about the loaves.”
The lesson of the event of feeding the 5,000 was lost on them.

The lesson of the loaves is that Jesus has the power to meet our 
needs. His adequacy eliminates inadequacy and His ability replaces 
our inability. The voice we should hear in our times of fear is His, 
as He says…
    “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
    (Mark 6:50)

ACTION:
Don’t lose sight of the significance of the power of the Lord.
Don’t lose sight of the significance of the Lord’s sacrifice 
for our sins. Don’t let your ‘hearts be hardened’. What will 
you do to stay focused on His significance?

We should strive to develop His characteristics in our own lives.
This serves as a constant reminder of His significance in our lives.
What characteristics of Jesus are present in your life right now?
What attributes do you have that are not similar to those of Jesus?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, teach me to look to You when 
I need help. Remind me that the power is not in 
me when I am up, or when I am down, but it all 
comes from You. Help me to remain focused in the 
right direction.Thank You for Your presence in 
my life and help me to never forget Your loving 
care for those who belong to You!”

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