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There is a lot to take in with today’s reading. I focused in on final verse of the chapter, verse 35 where it says, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” In this simple verse Jesus places all of us exactly where He wants us to be, which is in perfect relationship with Him. Jesus readily calls us His “bother and sister and mother”. I sometimes have to remind myself just how much He loves me and how much He wants to have a real and personal relationship with me.
Daily Devotion 
I love in the beginning of the reading where Jesus flips the Pharisees questioning back on them. They’re so wrapped up in the laws and rules that they can’t see forest for the trees. Clearly the man needed help and clearly the right thing to do was to help him. But the Pharisees couldn’t get over the time and place that it was occurring. That correlates to my life. There are clearly times and places where people need help, but I’m too blinded by my own perceptions to see their need. I need eyes like Jesus had.
Ha, I never noticed how incredibly dumb the Pharisees were until now! In Mark 3, they WATCHED Jesus heal a man with a crippled hand, which was one of HUNDREDS of miracles they witnessed Him perform. As he healed the man, “Jesus looked them in the eye, one after another, angry now, furious at their hard-hosed religion.” Wow, they actually SAW the power of Jesus in action, then they SAW His anger towards them. To me (and to anyone who has half a brain), it would seem wise to immediately apologize to the angry, all-powerful Being and hope He wouldn’t turn me into dust right after! But the Pharisees were idiots; instead they persistently pursued their plans to ruin Him! It just speaks to their pride and arrogance- who are they that they have the right to come against Jesus?! To think, if there ever would be a fight, who would win? God-in-human-form vs. a few wimpy church geeks?! Dumb, dumb, dumb. I pray that I will take my eyes off of myself and turn them towards God- it’s the only way to stay humble.
“Jesus looked them in the eye, one after another, angry now, furious at their hard-hosed religion.” – Again, Jesus gets angry. He gets furious. He hates injustice, and he hates misrepresentation of his father, and he does something about it. He doesn’t sugar coat his responses to them. He doesn’t worry about hurting their feelings. He tells them like it is. And when I picture this interaction in my head, it seems to me that he looks them in the eye, heals the hand and almost shoves it in their faces to say, “See! What are you gonna do about it?” I love this man. He is always appropriate to the situation. He’s not a sissy.