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Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 

Hebrews 11:1

When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”

Mark 5:27-28

And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 18:3

Kids have big, wild dreams. They have ideas, they have enthusiasm, and they have no idea that sometimes, those dreams are all but impossible. With each new bout of creativity, they fling themselves forward into a storm of ideas, play, and excitement about all the possibilities that lie ahead of them. 

Somewhere along the way, our dreams get smaller. In some ways, it’s because they become more realistic (I mean, maybe fire-power flowers could be created, but probably not). In other ways, they become more achievable (every leader loves a SMART goal). But in many ways, they become smaller because we begin to doubt. Doubt what’s possible. Doubt what God can do. Doubt that big, wild things are still under the control of a big, wild God that created all that is big and wild and wonderful in the world. 

In Mark 5, we meet a woman who has spent more than a decade of her life navigating what must have been a painful and heartbreaking reality—an unknown condition that caused her body to bleed—likely leaving her frail, tired, pained, and outcast. What did her life look like before she began to bleed? What were her hopes and dreams? Where did she flourish? What big, wild ideas did she have about her story before she fell ill? Certainly not this. 

Although her hope for restored health was a very practical one, considering all the unknown (every doctor, all her money, twelve years), it was big, wild, and all but impossible. All the realities around her said that there wasn’t anything that could be done. 

But her faith didn’t stay small. She believed that it was possible. That if she made it close enough to just touch the robe of this man they called Jesus, she would be healed. And you know what? She was right. 

What if she would have allowed her faith to remain small? To let the circumstances she was surrounded by decide how big her God was?

Maybe there’s something we can learn from those big, wild, child-like dreams—that there is a big, wild, powerful God that has a big, wild plan for each of us—if we just allow ourselves big, wild faith and get close enough to touch it. 

Next Steps 

Where in your life are you keeping God small? Spend time in prayer, speaking honestly about your big, wild hope for that part of your life. Then, spend time listening and see how God responds.