Mark 8:22-26

²² They came into Bethsaida. They brought a blind man to him and pleaded with him to touch him. ²³ He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when he had put spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” ²⁴ And he looked up and said, “I do see men that are like trees, walking.” ²⁵ Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything normally. ²⁶ Then he sent him away to his house, saying, “Do not even go into the village.”

times of partial success

I have been exploring Mark’s Gospel with the assumption that the book can be used as a sort of manual for training those who will serve others in Jesus’ name. This story shows how such an assumption would affect the application of the text. Obviously Jesus did not need to heal this blind man in stages. But he chose to do so. Perhaps he was showing his disciples that at times those we serve will need a second touch. Not every problem will have an immediate solution. Sometimes we will have to revisit the issue and slightly change our approach. Other times all it will take is persistence and trust that no one is to blame for lack of success. God has a plan, and even those times of partial success fit into that plan.