July 7, 2019 – Learning from James – Mist to Meaning

Mist to Meaning


Ecclesiastes 12:8-14 - New International Version (NIV)

⁸ “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.
    “Everything is meaningless!”

⁹ Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. ¹⁰ The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.

¹¹ The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails—given by one shepherd. ¹² Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.

Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.

¹³ Now all has been heard;
    here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
    for this is the duty of all mankind.
¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment,
    including every hidden thing,
    whether it is good or evil.

What was “Meaningless” (verse 8)?

Who “imparted knowledge to the people” (verse 9)?

What did the Teacher search for (verse 10)?

What are ”the words of the wise” like (verse 11)?

In your opinion, why should we be warned of “anything in addition to them” (verse 12)?

What is the “duty of all mankind” (verse 13)?

Who will “bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing” (verse 14)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 2:13-17 - New International Version (NIV)                

¹³ Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. ¹⁴ As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

¹⁵ While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷ On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Who came to Jesus that “he began to teach” (verse 13)?

What did Jesus tell Levi son of Alphaeus (verse 14)?

What did Levi do (verse 14)?

Who was with Jesus at the dinner in Levi’s house (verse 15)?

In your opinion, were the teachers of the law eating with Jesus also (verse 16)?

What did the “teachers of the law who were Pharisees” ask the disciples (verse 16)?


How did Jesus answer the question (verse 17)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, who, in the events portrayed in Mark 2:13-17, do you think was being obedient to the instruction of the Teacher in Ecclesiastes 12:8-14 to “fear God and keep his commandments”?


Romans 14:1-13 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. ² One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. ³ The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴ Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵ One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶ Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷ For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. ⁸ If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ⁹ For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

¹⁰ You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. ¹¹ It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
    every tongue will acknowledge God.’”

¹² So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

¹³ Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

How are we to “accept the one whose faith is weak” (verse 1)?

How must the “one who eats everything” not treat the “one who does not” (verses 2 and 3)?

What must the “one who does not eat everything” not do to “the one who does” (verses 2 and 3)?

Why will they stand (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why should the one who considers one day special and the one who considers all days alike both “be fully convinced in their own minds” (verses 5 and 6)?

What do none of us do for “ourselves alone” (verse 7)?

Who do we belong to “whether we live or die” (verse 8)?

Why did Christ die and return to life (verse 9)?

Where will we all stand (verse 10)?

What will every tongue do (verse 11)?

What will each give to God (verse 12)?

What should each of us make up our minds to not do (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what is the difference between fearing God and keeping His commandments as instructed by Ecclesiastes 12:8-14 and eating meat to the Lord or abstaining from eating meat to the Lord as Paul discusses in Romans 14:1-13?

In your opinion, what part of Paul’s instruction in Romans 14:1-13 are the “teachers of the law who were Pharisees” in Mark 2:13-17 violating? 


James 4:11-17 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. ¹² There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?

¹³ Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” ¹⁴ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. ¹⁷ If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

What does someone who “speaks against a brother or sister or judges them” speak against (verse 11)?

How many can “save and destroy” (verse 12)?


In your opinion, why is it wrong to say “today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money” (verses 13 and 14)?


What should we say instead (verse 15)?


What kind of boasting is evil (verse 16)?


What is it if anyone “knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it” (verse 17)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, how is the Teacher in Ecclesiastes 12:8-14 saying that “everything is meaningless” but then saying that fearing God and keeping His commands is our duty similar to James saying that we “are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” but then adding that we should say “if it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that” in James 4:11-17?  How are they different?


In your opinion, how can we who recognize our sinfulness be comforted by the fact that the one that James 4:11-17 says is the only “Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy” is the one who says in Mark 2:13-17 that ”I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners”?


In your opinion, how does Paul’s progression from condemning contempt or judging others to recognizing that “Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living” in Romans 14:1-13 and James’ shift from condemning judging and boasting to saying “if it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that” in James 4:11-17 give us examples of the transformation we should make in ourselves today?


In your opinion, what do these passages from Ecclesiastes, Mark, Romans and James teach us about the parts of our lives that are meaningless and how to move on from meaningless to belonging to the Lord whether we live or die?


In your opinion, how can we move from the mist to a life of meaning?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

May 12, 2019 – Learning from James – Our Desires to His Gifts

-                        The

Our Desires to His Gifts


Deuteronomy 17:14-20 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” ¹⁵ be sure to appoint over you a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. ¹⁶ The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.” ¹⁷ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.

¹⁸ When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees ²⁰ and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.

What does God, through Moses, anticipate that the Israelites will want in the promised land (verse 14)?

Who should they appoint as king (verse 15)?


In your opinion, why should the king not “acquire great numbers of horses for himself” (verse 16)?


What will happen if the king takes “many wives” (verse 17)?


How is the king to get a copy of this law (verse 18)?


Why should the king read his copy of the law “all the days of his life” (verse 19)?


Who is the king not to “consider himself better than” (verse 20)?


How is the king to approach the law (verse 21)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 10:35-45 - New International Version (NIV)              

³⁵ Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

³⁶ “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

³⁷ They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

³⁸ “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

³⁹ “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, ⁴⁰ but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

⁴¹ When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. ⁴² Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Who told Jesus “we want you to do for us whatever we ask” (verse 35)?

How did Jesus respond (verse 36)?


When did they want to sit at Jesus right and left hand (verse 37)?


In your opinion, why did Jesus say they did not know what they were asking (verse 38)?


What question did Jesus ask them (verse 38)?


In your opinion, what did Jesus mean by “you will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with” (verse 39)?


Who do the places at Jesus right and left belong to (verse 40)?


How did the rest of the disciples respond (verse 41)?


What do “those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles” do (verse 42)?


How does the disciple who wants to be great need to act (verse 43)?


Who must “be slave of all” (verse 44)?


Why did “the Son of Man” come (verse 45)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, what effect does Jesus have on the law that Moses gave to the kings of Israel in Deuteronomy 17:14-20 when he tells the disciples what they are to do in Mark 10:35-45?


1 Timothy 6:11-21 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. ¹² Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. ¹³ In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you ¹⁴ to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵ which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ¹⁶ who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.

¹⁷ Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. ¹⁸ Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. ¹⁹ In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

²⁰ Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, ²¹ which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith.

Grace be with you all.

What does Paul tell Timothy to pursue (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is “the good fight of the faith” (verse 12)?

Who “gives life to everything” (verse 13)?

How long is Timothy to do the things Paul commanded (verse 14)?

Who is “the King of kings and Lord of lords” (verse 15)?

Where does God live (verse 16)?

What are those who are rich not to put their hope in (verse 17)?

What are the rich to do (verse 18)?

In your opinion, what is “the life that is truly life” (verse 19)?

What is Timothy to “turn away from” (verse 20)?

How does Paul end 1 Timothy (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s instruction in 1 Timothy 6:11-21 help us understand about why God would command a king not to accumulate gold or silver or horses in Deuteronomy 17:14-20?

In your opinion, how does Jesus’ instruction to those who wish to become great to instead become servants in Mark 10:35-45 become more specific in Paul’s instruction to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:11-21?


James 1:9-18 – New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. ¹⁰ But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. ¹¹ For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.

¹² Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

¹³ When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; ¹⁴ but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

¹⁶ Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ¹⁸ He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Who should take pride “in their high position” (verse 9)?

What should the rich take pride in (verse 10)?


When will the rich “fade away” (verse 11)?


How is the “one who perseveres under trial” blessed (verse 12)?


Why should the person who is tempted not say “God is tempting me” (verse 13)?


When are people tempted (verse 14)?


What happens “after desire has conceived” (verse 15)?


In your opinion, what does it mean to not “be deceived” (verse 16)?


Who does “every good and perfect gift” come from (verse 17)?


How does God “give us birth” (verse 18)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, how is Moses’ command to a king to “not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn away from the law to the left or right” in Deuteronomy 17:14-20 echoed by 
James’ command to the rich to “take pride in their humiliation” that is followed by the discussion about temptation in James 1:9-18?


In your opinion, how does Jesus ending His discussion about being great through being a servant by saying “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” in Mark 10:35-45 help the disciples understand what was truly valuable in the same way that James does in James 1:9-18 when he says “every good and perfect gift is from above”?


In your opinion, what can we learn from the fact that both Paul, in Timothy 6:11-21 “command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant not to put their hope in wealth” and James, in James 1:9-18 “the rich should take pride in their humiliation” address wealth like it is a challenge to faith?


In your opinion, what do these passages from Deuteronomy, Mark, 1 Timothy and James help us understand about the our desires?


In your opinion, how do we move from pursuing our own desires to receiving the “every good and perfect gift” from Father and the One who gave His life to ransom us?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

May 5, 2019 – Learning from James – Overcoming Unbelief

-                        The

Overcoming Unbelief


Deuteronomy 32:18-21 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁸ You deserted the Rock, who fathered you;
    you forgot the God who gave you birth.

¹⁹ The Lord saw this and rejected them
    because he was angered by his sons and daughters.
²⁰ “I will hide my face from them,” he said,
    “and see what their end will be;
for they are a perverse generation,
    children who are unfaithful.
²¹ They made me jealous by what is no god
    and angered me with their worthless idols.
I will make them envious by those who are not a people;
    I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding.

Who did the Israelite people desert (verse 18)?

Who did the Israelite people forget (verse 18)?


What did the Lord do when He saw this (verse 19)?


In your opinion, why did He call the Israelite people His “sons and daughters” (verse 19)?


How will the Lord respond to the rejection of the Israelite people (verse 20)?


What made the Lord jealous (verse 21)?


What had angered the Lord (verse 21)?


In your opinion, what will it take for the Lord make the Israelite people envious (verse 22)?


Who will make the Israelies angry (verse 22)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 9:14-29 - New International Version (NIV)                

¹⁴ When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. ¹⁵ As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.

¹⁶ “What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.

¹⁷ A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. ¹⁸ Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.”

¹⁹ “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

²⁰ So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth.

²¹ Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?”

“From childhood,” he answered. ²² “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.”

²³ “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”

²⁴ Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

²⁵ When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”

²⁶ The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.

²⁸ After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

²⁹ He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”

Who were the “other disciples” arguing with (verse 14)?

How did the people respond to Jesus (verse 15)?


What did Jesus ask them (verse 16)?


Why was the man’s son unable to speak (verse 17)?


What did the man ask the disciples to do that they could not do (verse 18)?


In your opinion, what did Jesus mean by “you unbelieving generation” (verse 19)?


What happened to the boy when he was brought to Jesus (verse 20)?


How long had the boy been like this (verse 21)?


In your opinion, why did the father say “if you can do anything” (verse 22)?


What does Jesus say is possible “for one who believes” (verse 23)?


In your opinion, what did the father mean by “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” (verse 24)?


When did Jesus rebuke “the impure spirit” (verse 25)?


Why did many say that the boy was dead after the spirit came out (verse 26)?


What did Jesus do (verse 27)?


When did the disciples ask Jesus “why couldn’t we drive it out” (verse 28)?


How did Jesus answer (verse 29)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, what is the difference between the Israelites who God called a “perverse generation” in Deuteronomy 32:18-21 and the father, who confessed unbelief but received the healing he wanted for his son, in Mark 9:14-29?


Romans 5:1-11 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹ Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

When do we have “peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (verse 1)?

How do we gain access “into this grace in which we now stand” (verse 2)?

What do we “glory in” (verse 3)?

What produces character (verse 4)?

Why does hope “not put us to shame” (verse 5)?

In your opinion, what does Paul mean by “when we were still powerless” (verse 6)?

How often will “anyone die for a righteous person” (verse 7)?

When did Christ die for us (verse 8)?

Since we have been “justified by his blood” what will we be saved from (verse 9)?

What happened “while we were God’s enemies” (verse 10)?

How do we “boast in God” (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what is the difference between the “peverse generation” that God was talking about in Deuteronomy 32:18-21 and the Romans that Paul was writing to in Romans 5:1-11?

In your opinion, how does what Paul revealed about Christ loving us enough that He died for us in Romans 5:1-11 help us understand about the tone of voice (angry or sad) that Jesus might have used when He said “you unbelieving generation . . . how long shall I stay with you” in Mark 9:14-29?


James 1:1-8 – New International Version (NIV)

¹James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations:

Greetings.

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

How does James describe himself (verse 1)?

In your opinion, who does James mean by “the twelve tribes scattered among the nations” (verse 1)?


What are we to consider it whenever we “face trials of many kinds” (verse 2)?


How is perseverance produced (verse 3)?


When do we become “mature and complete, not lacking anything” (verse 4)?


What should we do if we recognize that we lack wisdom (verse 5)?


In your opinion, what does it mean to “believe and not doubt” (verse 6)?


What is one who doubts like (verse 6)?


How much should one who doubts expect to receive from the Lord (verse 7)?


Who is “double-minded and unstable in all they do” (verse 8)?


In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?


In your opinion, how does knowing about the Israelite people in Deuteronomy 32:18-21 help us understand what James means by “the one who doubts is like a wave in the sea, blown and tossed by the wind” in James 1:1-8?


In your opinion, how do we reconcile Jesus helping the father in Mark 9:14-29 who says “I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief” with James’s statement in James 1:1-8 that “you must believe and not doubt” to expect to receive anything from the Lord?


In your opinion, what do we learb from Paul in Romans 5:1-11 when he says that we should “glory in our sufferings” and from James when he says in James 1:1-8 that we should “consider it pure joy” when we face trials of many kinds before they each speak of perseverance?


In your opinion, what do these passages from Deuteronomy, Mark, Romans and James teach us about doubting and persevering?


In your opinion, should each of us say to Jesus “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief”?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)