With Faith, Nothing Is Impossible

𝐀𝐔𝐆. 𝟗, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓: 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐇 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊 𝐈𝐍 𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 

𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐃𝐞𝐮𝐭 𝟔:𝟒-𝟏𝟑  

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟏𝟖:𝟐-𝟒, 𝟒𝟕, 𝟓𝟏 "𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡."   𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋:𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐓 𝟏𝟕:𝟏𝟒-𝟐𝟎   

𝑲𝒆𝒚 𝑽𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆: "𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉." (𝒗.20)  

        The nine disciples of Jesus must have been filled with so much embarrassment over their failure to cast out the demon from a boy that was brought before them notwithstanding the power over demons that Christ had given them (𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭 𝟏𝟎:𝟖).

         Remember that before this event Jesus sent out the 72 disciples to the countryside and they came back rejoicing about the many miracles and healing they performed, saying: “𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒎𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆.” (𝑳𝒌 10:17)        

         We don’t know exactly the reason why the nine disciples lost their God-given power, albeit momentarily, and they had to ask Jesus why they could not drive out the demon from the boy. The response of Jesus is short and simple, and it is also addressed to us: “𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉.” (𝒗.20)         But beneath this scenario lies what could be the untold reason why the nine disciples failed to heal the demon-possessed boy. The cause could be their unbelief and lack of devotion driven perhaps by envy they must have felt because the other three disciples – Peter, James and John – had gone up to the mountain with Jesus.

         Secret sin such as an envious spirit that we harbor robs us of power. Unbelief also robs us of power. But always remember that when the King comes again, He will bind Satan and set the world free from demonic powers. (𝐑𝐞𝐯. 𝟏𝟗:𝟏𝟏-𝟐𝟎:𝟑)        

          Many have misconstrued this particular declaration of Jesus that we read in 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭 𝟏𝟕:𝟏𝟒-𝟐𝟎 believing that all it takes to have our prayers answered is to just believe. What we should bear in mind is that believing is merely the start or the door that will open for us the graces that only God can supply.

          Following this initial action of believing is the need for us to have faith, build it up until we are fully possessed by our faith in Him whom we do not see but one in whom we believe.

          However, for our belief and faith to become operative, we need to rely on the Will of God for us because at the end of the day, only God can make it happen. What am I saying here? We may believe and have faith, yet these are the only things that we can do because the answering part is dependent on what God’s Will is for us.

          In other words, our God will act and move and will respond to our prayers if what we will be asking for will be good for us and for others. Thus, we may believe and have faith, but we cannot ask for something that will not be for our own good or those around us.

          In today’s gospel passage we see Jesus expressing his exasperation when he learned that his disciples failed in their task (𝒗.17) as he said: “𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆! 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝑰 𝒃𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖? 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝑰 𝒑𝒖𝒕 𝒖𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖?” And in the Gospel of Mark, we see a beautiful exchange between Jesus and the father of the boy who said: “𝑰 𝒅𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒖𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒇.” (𝑴𝒌 9:24)

          This is precisely the point of the gospel today as many of us believe in Jesus but there is still that element of unbelief whether our prayers will indeed by answered. Many believers have become cafeteria Christians as we pick that which will benefit us and leave everything else.

          And then we go into the same cycle again when something goes wrong. While there is nothing wrong in coming to God and ask Him for favors, we also have to do our part meaning that what we ask must be aligned with God’s Will and that what seek must not be for selfish purposes.

          At the same time, we also should not forget the importance of having a sustaining faith in God and the role of fasting as the driving force behind our prayers.

          Remember that in this gospel scene, Jesus just came down from the mountain where he fasted and prayed for confirmation of His Father’s Will for Him. When his disciples asked why they can’t cast out the evil spirit, Jesus replied: “𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉. 𝑻𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒚 𝑰 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒅, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏, ‘𝑴𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆,’ 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒐𝒗𝒆. 𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” (𝒗.20)  

          I never had any problem with prayer as I was introduced to praying by my mother and an aunt who teaches in a Catholic school and who would later be my classroom teacher. I grew up memorizing all the important Catholic prayers and had them stored in my head and I could flip those prayers whenever I needed to.

          But everything was mechanical, and it was only when we were already in the renewal movement that I learned the indissoluble link between faith and belief and the role of the Holy Spirit who helps magnify our prayers that this may find favor in God.

          When we look deeper into the Gospel reading today, you will note that there are at least 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 that we can learn from. The 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧 is when Jesus went down from the mountain top, his aura changed dramatically, and he exuded confidence to face the Cross after he received confirmation of his mission to save the world from Moses and Elijah. This was also because Jesus was always connected to God in prayer not just in times of crisis but in every moment of his life.

          The 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧 we can pick up from the Gospel was about the attitude of the father of the boy who sought Jesus for help. We can surmise that since Jesus was at the mountain top the father had no choice but to ask the disciples and his faith was badly shaken when the disciples could not heal his son who was possessed by a mute spirit.

          Though he was let down by the disciples the father did not lose hope and when he saw Jesus, his faith was reignited such that the words he uttered: “𝑰 𝒅𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆; 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒖𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒇!” (𝒗.24) and such expression of faith however minute was enough to turn the father’s request into a miraculous possibility.

         This incident is nothing new. Even today, there are times when people get less than what they hope for from some church leaders or servants in a spiritual community. When such things happen, those who feel discouraged at this seeming apathy of church leaders need to go around these church leaders and seek Jesus Christ himself. The church or community may sometimes disappoint us but not when we come face to face with Jesus at the Adoration Chapel.

          The 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧 that we can pick up is this – God may have given us the gift of faith, but unless we enter into a closer contact with Jesus this faith will wither and die. This is true with other gifts and how we make use these gifts is largely dependent on our contact with God through prayer.

         When we lose sight of such a relationship with our God, we lose two things regardless of how great our gift may be: 𝘢) 𝘞𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦-𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘰𝘥; 𝘣) 𝘞𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘎𝘰𝘥’𝘴 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺.           

         The only way that we can keep the gift of faith and the power we received from God is by nurturing these gifts with prayer. We enrich our relationship with God by our ceaseless contact with the divine power who gave us these gifts.

          I remember one of the revered Saints of the Catholic Church who once said that prayer and faith go together: “𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒔, 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔. 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆?” Let's not forget that God gave His Holy Spirit to us so that we may have the confidence to ask God for his help. Again, such is dependent on our trust in God’s mercy and love for those who believe and whose faith remains anchored in God and God alone. (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 – 𝘈𝘶𝘨. 9, 2025)