²³ Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’?^[a] Everything is possible for the one who believes.” (Mark 9:23 CSB)

A man had just brought his son to Jesus to be healed from a demon who had possessed the boy from childhood. It caused the child to thrash about and foam at the mouth. Today we would see this as a medical problem and not a spiritual one.

But Jesus knew this was something more and furthermore he was a bit frustrated that His disciples were unable to cast this demon out.

If you can. The father asked.

I can imagine what would have been a frustrated look from anyone else was a loving look from Christ who simply said, “Everything is possible for the one who believes.”

You see, we too often ask “If you can.” We, of little faith, do not ask a thing and then have complete faith that God will answer. We continue on, riddled with anxiety and doubt waiting for something, anything to happen.

We should, like the father, be saying, “I do believe; help my unbelief!”

The Lord is just waiting for our belief to become strong enough to act many times. He is wanting us to show how we are growing in our faith and maturing to the point of not asking, “if you can.”