A Desperate Patient
Barbara Thompson, Guest Writer
Today’s Treasure
Daughter, your faith has made you well, go in peace, be healed.
Mark 5:34
Today we meet another woman known only as the woman with a discharge of blood. What do we learn about the setting of her story from Matthew, Mark, and Luke? And what is the significance to our story?
The story of this woman is set in these three gospels in the context of Jesus’s show of power over demons, death, disease, and nature. In other words, the true identity of the Messiah is unfolding before our eyes as we read these words.
This woman’s story calls us to empathy and compassion. She had suffered a discharge of blood for twelve years. This suffering was not only physical but emotional and social as she felt shame and isolation. She had spent all of her resources for a cure and had sought help from many physicians. I am certain this sounds familiar to most of us either in our own or another woman’s experience. We have heard and lived those words “there is no cure for your illness”.
This woman’s story calls us to hope. She had enough faith to wind her way through the crowd, unseen, and to creep up behind Jesus to touch the very fringe of His garment. She had heard about Him and believed “If only I touch Him I will be made well.”
This woman’s story calls us to transparency. Jesus called the woman out and she, albeit reluctantly, tells her story at His feet in front of the entire crowd. Again, our hearts respond in empathy as we consider our own reluctance to tell our story in front of just one person. This precious woman is telling her story before a crowd of strangers, religious leaders, and a compassionate Man who knows she has pursued Him.
This woman’s story calls us to peace. Jesus through her healing, announces Himself as the Healer and her Father. She is no longer “a” woman with a discharge of blood. She is a beloved daughter of the Savior, and she is instructed by her Savior to go in peace. To go in peace… after 12 years of suffering, isolation, and desperately seeking answers.
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
Be encouraged, dear sisters that God works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called. Our compassionate Savior hears our story with compassion and empathy.
PRAYER
Father in heaven we thank You that Your healing gives us peace with You, others, and inner peace with ourselves. Thank You that You are the Great Physician.
Your story: Think about your feelings in the story you are writing. Consider asking another person to hear your story. Ask God to give that person compassion and empathy for you as you tell your story.
**Often when we tell our stories, hearers can respond with corrective spirit, their own feelings, advice, etc. Remember Job’s friends. It may be helpful to ask the person to put themselves in your shoes as you share. It is important to set your own expectations of sharing a story and not depend on a certain response or experience.
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Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
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Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.