8 Days to Prepare Your Heart for EasterНамуна

Leaning Into the Power of Asking Questions

By Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young

Recently, my daughter was struggling with a teacher’s decision that came at a cost to her and other students. Confusion, frustration and misunderstanding came tumbling out as she told me the details.

My instinct was to call the teacher and defend my daughter. However, I decided it was more important to coach my girl on how to articulate her concerns respectfully and ask good questions.

Jesus modeled how to ask thoughtful questions to foster understanding, build relationships and deepen faith among the people around Him. He used questions to teach, defend, challenge, make people think, meet people in their grief, and help center the stories of those who were often treated as outsiders.

●At a well, Jesus asked a lonely Samaritan woman for a drink and engaged her in conversation, revealing Himself for the first time as the Messiah.

●Jesus asked a chronically sick man if he wanted to get well, having him consider what he believed before receiving healing.

●“Who do you say I am?”Jesus asked Peter in a poignant moment with His disciples before facing His death on the cross (Matthew 16:15, NIV).

During Holy Week, the religious leaders challenged Jesus’ authority to turn the tables in the temple and teach the gospel. Jesus responded with a pointed question:

“John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?” (Matthew 21:25a, NIV).

The leaders knew if they answered that John’s baptism was from heaven, Jesus would ask why they didn’t believe him. They also knew if they answered “human origin,” then their own people, who believed in John the Baptist as a prophet, would turn against them. They had maliciously hoped to trap Jesus with their challenges, but instead He trapped them in their questioning.

Friend, can you think of a time in your life when you were unsure of how to handle a situation? When you experienced something frustrating or witnessed an injustice? When you longed to overcome a rift in a relationship?

Jesus isn’t scared of our questions or doubts; in fact, He welcomes them. Questions are a powerful way to engage, respectfully challenge and even care for others. Don’t underestimate the power of a question.

Dear God, please give me wisdom in the difficult situations I’m facing today. Help me to form thoughtful questions, and give me the courage to ask them. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.