Only If You Want It

 

Photo Credit: Joe Pearson. 2018.

By Cale Gressman 

Mark 6:5-6 states  “He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.”

I once saw a YouTube video of a conversation with a homeless man in San Francisco. The video was ten-plus years old and the city had not gotten to the state it is in now. The homeless man was, predictably, an addict. Heroin. He described clearly and intelligently that the drug had made him give up on everything in life; job, house, girlfriend, everything. When asked if he wanted to quit he said something akin to “Ask me that in a couple of years, I don’t want to quit yet.” This is actually rather clear-headed and profound statement. Usually, those in a bad situation are in denial, whether this being the cliche of “I can quit any time” or “I really want to quit but I can’t.” This man understood that this was on him and only him. You can only be saved if you want to be.