Scripture
Our verse for today comes from John 4:49, “The nobleman said to Him, ‘Sir, come down before my child dies.’”
Background
It’s not hard to imagine the father of Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni needing some work done around the house and calling upon his industrious son to help out. After all, Lodovico’s dad was a banker and town administrator, and so his hands may not have been inclined to the work of swinging a hammer or yielding a paint brush. If the walls of their home were in need of attention, certainly the young boy was capable of managing, if not so much more. When Lodovico went away to school, he struggled to focus on his studies, instead preferring to doodle and hang out with others who were not interested in school. At seventeen, Lodovico’s circumstances changed, and he returned home. Grateful to an instructor back at the local church, he carved a gift for him to show his gratitude. Eventually, as he devoted more time to his craft, Lodovico also began to establish the reputation that led to the man we know of today as Michelangelo. For out of the hands that may have painted a bedroom or smashed stones in the yard as a young boy came masterpieces such as the sculpture of David and the fresco ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. He may have doodled or carved a quick project for a friend or customer, but all along there was within him the capacity to do and be so much more.
Application
When the nobleman begged Jesus to come with him to heal his son, he feared the end result that was awaiting. He knew nothing of sickness or infection, but he knew his son was losing the battle. But to Jesus, the power of a virus, or the strength of disease is nothing. To heal the son was no easier or different than if Jesus would have restored his life. For Christ, what we so often ask or beg of Him is so trivial in light of what He is, and what He is capable of doing. We desperately long for a doodle of a tree, where the leaves all look like a green lollipop on top of a brown trunk, complete with a squirrel hole in the center. But He has frescoes and sculptures waiting for us, in His will and timing. If we will know whom we seek, we will see what all He can do.
Charge
As we seek Him today, let go of your crayon drawings of God, and let Him work a masterpiece through you.
