Waiting for a Miracle: Devotion for February 9

There are moments in the Gospels when Jesus feels especially gentle. This painting captures one of those moments.

In the book of Mark, a man named Jairus comes to Jesus because his young daughter is very sick. Jairus is an important leader, but none of that matters now. He is just a parent who is scared. He says to Jesus, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and help her so she can live.”

Jesus goes with him but on the way, but he is slowed down. Another woman stops Jesus. She has been sick for twelve years and needs help. While Jesus listens to her, Jairus waits.

Then the worst news comes. Mourners from Jairus’ house arrive and say, “Your daughter has died. There is no reason to bother Jesus anymore.” Those words feel final. They assume the story is over and nothing can be done. Jesus does not argue. He simply looks at Jairus and says, “Don’t be afraid. Just trust me.”

That moment changes everything.

Painter Ritter von Max shows the scene just before everything changes. The girl lies still and quiet. Jesus stands close to her—not dramatic, not loud, just present. His body language is calm.

Sometimes life feels like this moment. Nothing looks better yet. The loss still hurts. The answer hasn’t come. But presence matters because the hardest part sometime is the waiting because waiting stretches people. It shows us what we really expect. Many of us trust Jesus to help a little—but not to change everything. We trust him with problems that feel fixable—but not with the ones we think are finished.

Some of us are like Jairus, worried about someone we love. Some of us feel like the woman earlier in the story, hoping it’s not too late after 12 years of pain. Some of us feel like the mourners, sure the story is over. And some of us feel like the child—still, quiet, waiting for someone to speak life again.

The good news is that Jesus enters every one of those places. He does not stay far away. He comes close and speaks gently. And he brings life where people have already learned to expect loss.

Featured art: The Raising of Jairus' Daughter, Gabriel Cornelius Ritter von Max, 1878, Montreal Museum of Fine Art