Have you ever been in a season where you wanted to expect that good things were happening?

Maybe it was springtime, maybe it was a new year, maybe it was a new season, and you wanted to expect good things.

You wanted to have an expectation of good.

But in the back of your mind, there is this

voice, a voice of doubt, maybe things that have happened before, maybe for whatever reason,

this very human condition of wanting to expect good, but really actually holding on to doubt.

Can you think of a moment you felt that way?

Right now, in this moment of prayer,

will you close your eyes?

Just have a conversation with God very gently

about honestly telling him how you felt in that moment.

And as you brought that to God,

as you brought the belief and the doubt at the same time,

did you find yourself wondering,

what would Jesus say to that? How would he respond? Well, there is a scripture in the book of Mark.

We read a story in Mark chapter 9 where there was a father and a son and this son, it says,

from childhood, and now he is no longer a young child for year after year after year, had dealt with an affliction that had just taken over his entire life, brought

so much hopelessness to this son's parents and his family and the people around him.

And so they heard of a person, Jesus, who was setting people free from these types of afflictions.

And so they brought their son to Jesus.

But on this day, Jesus happened to not be there.

Instead, it was his disciples.

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