Day 285, or October the 12th. Just get on with
it. Our thoughts today are from Mark chapter
10, verse 51. What do you want me to do for you?
Jesus asked him. The blind man said, Rabbi, I
want to see. And now the big picture surrounding
this verse. As we proceed through the third and
final year of the ministry of Jesus, the pace
slows considerably. Mark has almost stopped using
his favourite word immediately. Mark's race through
the life of Jesus is now so important that to
rush it would seem unseemly. As he approaches
the climax of the crucifixion and resurrection,
even Mark is slowed down by the gravity of the
whole account. In the midst of his ministry in
Galilee, Jesus travels south to Judea for the
last time, and very soon he will only have days
to live before he is crucified. And now today's
action step. As a youngster, I will never forget
the way my mother would tell our family when
a neighbour was pregnant. She always said, I
see Mary next door is, you know. We always acted
daft and said that we didn't know what she meant,
even though we knew full well. My mother would
try again, but simply couldn't bring herself
to say such an intimate word as pregnant. We
are often like that when we talk about spiritual
things, especially with friends who are unbelievers.
We dither around the edge in case we offend them.
In our text today, Jesus asks a blunt question
and receives an equally blunt reply, no dithering.
I always remember visiting a couple hoping to
get the opportunity to tell them the good news.
We talked about everything else and finally one
of them said to me, I thought you'd come to tell
me about Jesus. I had and I did then. Please
don't blurt the gospel out like, as the Bible
says, pearls to swine, but don't dither too long
either. I have found people are not as easily
offended as you may suspect, so be encouraged
to speak out when the opportunity arises. You'll
feel so much better, and they'll benefit eternally
too.