how to miss out on a miracle
Read Time: 8 mins
“Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their unbelief. Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people.”
Mark 6:1-6 NLT
Growing up I felt uncomfortable asking for more. I felt like it was greedy or shallow to be like Jabez and ask God to bless me and expand my territory. But as I grow, I'm realizing that God is actually waiting for us to pray bigger prayers and believe Him for more. God wants you to partner with Him in the dreams He has for you to prosper. It’s not greedy to want all that God wants for you. It’s actually more rude to not accept the gifts that God is excitedly trying to pour out on us.
The Bible says that Jesus came to give life abundantly. God wants to give you more. He wants you to have purpose, peace, and prosperity. He desires to open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that you cannot hold. He desires to have you living blessed in the city, blessed in a field, blessed when you come and when you go. He wants to do exceedingly, abundantly, and above all you could ever ask, think, or even imagine. But God can't force you to be blessed. Some blessings require our participation and many of us are getting in our own way when it comes to receiving the unexplainable blessings and abundant life that God desires to give.
This verse holds one of the scariest sentences in the Bible, “because of their unbelief, He couldn’t do any miracles among them…” and I want to make sure the same can't be spoken of us. There are a few things we can learn from this story so that you don't miss out on miracles.
First I want to remind you that just because you're impressed doesn’t mean you will be impacted. Just because greatness happens around you doesn’t mean greatness will happen to you. The first thing the Bible tells us about this instance is that the people were impressed by Jesus’ wisdom and miracles. The people were amazed at Jesus’ teaching but never started treating Him like He actually had something to offer them. It’s not just enough that you admit that God has power, you have to treat Him like it. Belief is more than just recognizing that something exists. It’s living your life according to that understanding. If you truly believe it’s going to rain, you will react by grabbing an umbrella. If you truly believe a chair is a chair, you will trust it with your weight and sit on it. One reason we are missing out on miracles is we believe in God enough to watch Him work in the lives of others but not enough to try Him for ourselves. We are impressed, but not reaching out so that we too can be impacted.
The problem with being around God but not impacted by God is that familiarity can be the breeding ground for faithlessness. Jesus went to Ηis hometown of Nazareth and if anyone should see something special it's them. I loved growing up in Nashville because sharing a hometown with someone great typically sets you up for great experiences. Nashville isn’t just the throne of country music, it is also famous for its gospel music prowess. Because so many artists live in Nashville and so many labels are housed in Nashville, there was always a sense of excitement and expectation surrounding the music in Nashville. I remember being excited when it was time for the Stellar Awards to be held in Nashville, not just because my mom always found a way in, but because it meant we would also probably get to go to the TBN studio for a free concert taping. And while there always was a sense of excitement and honor, I can see how easily it could've shifted to apathy.
Growing up, I didn't realize it wasn't normal to go to church with members from Take 6, Virtue, Committed, The Breath of Life Quartet, Dee Dee and Chad Hammonds, Terrell Hunt, Armand Hutton, and so many others. I didn't realize it wasn't normal for Gale Jones Murphy to write an original appeal song during the sermon so that she could perform it after the sermon. I didn’t realize it wasn't normal to go to Grammy parties with people who were actually voting on who won. I didn't realize it wasn't normal to go to the studio as a kid and record the songs we'd play for VBS, singles with our middle school, or the church's original album that would be sung for praise and worship. Growing up in Nashville and especially going to Riverside was special. But many Nashvilians take it for granted.
Some artists actually don't like touring in industry towns like Nashville, because Nashvillians are spoiled. It’s sometimes hard to get a crowd to pay to see Cee Cee Winans or Cody Carnes and Kari Jobe because you can go to their churches and see them for free. Michael W. Smith is great, but if you see him at your church every Sunday you may take him for granted. This is one of the things we see happening in this story. They’re so familiar with greatness that they don't realize what they have. The literal creator of the universe is among them but no one cares because they’re too familiar with seeing Him work. And this can happen to us too. Just because you have seen God work before, doesn’t mean He doesn’t have more to offer. Mary could have settled for healing because she had seen it before, but she believed in resurrection and got a side of God that hadn’t yet been revealed. Don’t get so familiar with how you have seen God work in the past that you stop praying big prayers and giving Him opportunities for more.
Jesus didn't just say He came to give life. He said that his mission was to give life abundantly. In the original language that word literally means “overflowing.” Jesus’ mission wasn’t just to give you the regular “eating, breathing, sleeping,” life you're used to. He wants to give you an excessive, above and beyond, continually growing expression of abundance. You're supposed to continually have your mind blown as God shows you how much peace, joy, and love He can pour into your life. Don’t hold Him back from His mission by settling for normal.
Another thing we see here is that they allow opportunity to be misconstrued into offense. This is crazy. The person who breathes out planets took the time to hang out with them with the desire to expand their expression of life. And they didn’t just pass on it, they got offended.
These people grew up with Jesus. They went to the same high school and worked at the same Home Depot. But as the kid who was considered their equal (and some may even say inferior), comes back home after college, He has surpassed everyone else in the city. This is like the kid who you used to cook in basketball coming back home and being a 6’8 projected lottery pick. Jesus is a wise and powerful celebrity who made it from the hood no one believed could birth anything of substance. And I can imagine the envy because seeing success from others is one thing. You could complain about how you didn’t have the same opportunities or were held back. But this is someone who started where they started, but to them, His success and forward progression prove how behind they are. And this is what many of us need to wrestle with. Many of us are missing out on what God can offer because we can't admit that He has power we don't. We can admit that He is greater. We can't admit that we tried it on our own and failed and now we need help from the One we once underestimated. But this offense is just ruining their opportunity.
Growing up, my youngest brother Price quickly became the best athlete in the family. While I was bigger, stronger, and more athletic, it was apparent that he was smarter, more skilled, and loved the game more. It was crazy to see him hitting game-winners and scoring 30-point games as a 4th and 5th grader on the varsity middle school teams while I was a 7th-grade benchwarmer. But I had a decision to make. I could be insecure at the fact that my younger brother and I had started at the same time but he had surpassed me, or I could take it as an opportunity. Because his being good meant two things for me. For one, if he had the same genes, environment, and opportunities I had, it meant that I had in me some of what he had in him. His improvement could have led to inspiration because it meant improvement was possible for me too. But the other thing is that I realized that it's always good to keep someone who is better than you on your team and to keep them as close as possible because it doesn’t matter who is doing most of the work if your team is winning.
Don’t allow your ego to stop you from experiencing all God has for you. In order to let God be God in your life you have to realize you're not God. These people were offended that the person they grew up with was excelling more than them, but they could have jumped at the opportunity and allowed Him to use His power to help them win.
I can imagine Jesus would do anything for the people He grew up with. There's always a soft spot for the home team. But they couldn’t believe enough to ask because admitting that Jesus could do something they couldn’t was too much for their fragile egos. How much are we missing out on because we wish God was working through us and not someone else? How much are we missing out because we won’t admit that we don’t have it all together?
This isn’t just about Jesus. Some of you have friends you grew up with that you need to ask for advice. Some of the people you view as kids in your churches need to be groomed to take your position in leadership because God has called them beyond where He has called you. Some of you have seen the kids you used to babysit surpass you in select fields and areas and you need to stop creating bottlenecks and let them pass. Success from anyone is good for everyone. The rising tide raises all ships. If you truly want God to manifest himself in miracles, get out of the way, and don't be offended when He uses the things and people you look down on.
I remember hearing a CEO say that he doesn’t hire people who don't play sports because it's hard for them to understand that they still have value even though someone else may be better for a specific role. And while that may be extreme I get it. Just because someone else has been blessed differently does not mean you aren't or can’t be blessed too. Play your role and let them play theirs. Don’t allow your ego to stop the development of the team. If you truly want the company to succeed, you would let the kid you trained shine. If you truly want the team to win, don't stifle the freshman who you know can hit the shot. Don’t make that same mistake as Jesus’ hometown. Don’t let comparison and insecurity lead you to be intimidated by those who are sent to inspire. Don’t let offense kill your opportunity. If you want miracles you can't settle for what's been and you cannot allow the new things and people that God is using to offend you. Use it as an opportunity to dream and push for even more. Believe.
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