Matthew 9:2-8 (NKJV)

Many times, we ask God to fix our surface-level issues, but God knows that those issues are just the tip of the iceberg…

² Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.” ³ And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, “This Man blasphemes!” ⁴ But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? ⁵ For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise and walk’? ⁶ But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” ⁷ And he arose and departed to his house. ⁸ Now when the multitudes saw it, they marveled^[a] and glorified God, who had given such power to men.

This story is interesting to me because many times, we bring our petitions to God looking for Him to heal something very specific. This misguided expectation is exactly what leads to our disappointment and frustration with God. Many times, we become confused and are convinced that God isn’t listening to us. We even begin to doubt His mere existence because we set our sights on the wrong part of the issue. What I love about the Lord is that He always sees the big picture. He always sees what we cannot see. The onlookers of the miracle in this story missed it when Jesus said to the man, “your sins are forgiven.” Instead of rejoicing, the people challenged Him because they expected Him to address the man’s physical illness, which caused him to be unable to walk. But the Lord chose to address the man’s sin, which led to his paralysis in the first place. After reading this, it suddenly made sense. What is the point of God fixing our various situations without changing the very issue that brought us to this position in the first place? It’s like placing a Band-Aid on a broken bone. God is more concerned with our spiritual paralysis than our physical condition. The condition of our spirit is what leads us to choose right and wrong. Those decisions are what determine whether we thrive in Christ, or if we end up living stagnant and defeated lives. So if you find yourself asking God to fix surface-level things like your finances, your marriage, your relationship status, your job situation, etc., don’t be surprised to find Him digging up and exposing your lack of patience and discipline, negative thinking, pride, unforgiveness, selfishness or greed. And while we wait for the Lord to heal certain areas in our lives, let’s rejoice in the fact that we serve a God who sees and knows all, and most importantly, loves us enough to not just put Band-Aids on our wounds. We believe in a God who goes above and beyond to make sure that we live abundant, healthy and prosperous lives. Thank God for always seeing the bigger picture!