Blindsided Series - Post Two
Brenda Harris
Trusting the Specialist
The car had been blindsided. The driver’s side door was completely crushed and inoperable. The car’s paint was marred, and the window would not close. It could not be driven. Sadness and shock prevailed as I stared at the beat-up little car. There was nothing I could do to fix it; a specialist was needed who knew exactly how to repair the car to its optimal condition. The first step in the restoration process would require a tow truck to take the car to the autobody shop. Once it arrived there, it would be examined by a specialist and work would commence.
I was anxious for the car to be repaired and wished I could speed the process up by doing something tangible, but the work was way beyond my capability. This job could only be completed by someone with very specific skills, knowledge, and tools; none of which I possessed. The one thing I could do was entrust the car to the best autobody shop and then wait for the work to get underway. Patience would be required on my part because it would likely take a while.
When an event blindsides us, we may quickly recognize we have no tangible way to fix our unexpected circumstances. We don’t own a tow truck and we don’t specialize in autobody repairs. We must entrust the situation to a specialist. The really good news is this, as a believer in Jesus Christ, we know The One who specializes in restoration and it is God Himself. He alone knows exactly what each person needs, and He has everything at His disposal to correct the situation. Nothing is beyond His ability to rebuild and restore and most importantly, His work is flawless.
The Gospel of Mark chapter 7 tells about a man who was deaf and mute. His condition was desperate and perhaps some may have thought impossible to heal. However, he was still brought to Jesus, The Specialist, and this is what happened in verses 32-37.
32 Then they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on him. 33 And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue. 34 Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”
35 Immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plainly. 36 Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it. 37 And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”
I love that “they brought” him to Jesus believing He could do the work necessary to heal the man. We too can bring whatever may have blindsided us to Jesus knowing He holds the power to accomplish whatever is needed. As we pray asking God for His intervention, may I encourage all of us to plead with Him like the people in this story, even to the point of begging. We beg not because He is hardened toward us but rather because it demonstrates our persistence and desperate need of His help. Next, allow God to heal the way He sees best. In the account from Mark, Jesus took the man aside and healed him privately in ways that may have seemed odd or unnecessary to a bystander, yet the result was nothing short of miraculous. The man was restored and made whole. That is what God does! We can entrust The Specialist with our circumstances and await the day when we can proclaim, “He has done all things well.”