SCRIPTURE:
25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.” Mark 5:25-34
REFLECTION: (written by Scott Hellman)
Have you ever felt undesired or left out? How about like you just don’t belong, even though you so deeply desire to be seen and wanted?
I think deep down inside we all have that profound, longing desire to be wanted, needed, and seen. With all the distractions today, it’s easy to feel like we are just lost in the shuffle or just overlooked. Jesus knew that and still very much does today. I think that is why he always made himself so approachable and accessible. That’s one of the many things about my relationship with Jesus that draws me to Him. It’s his never-ending desire for my heart and his sincere desire to just spend time with me. He wants me just the way I am, right in the middle of my mess.
One thing we always see in the Bible is how accessible and in tune Jesus was to the outcast and forgotten, those who felt most excluded or left out. We see it repeatedly in the way Jesus always made himself accessible to anyone who felt left out or not needed. Whether it was the leper, the tax collector, the Gentile, the poor, the pagans, the sinners, or just like this shunned, sick woman we read about in Mark chapter 5. It did not matter; Jesus always invited them into his story, just as he does with us today.
Maybe Jesus was this way because he felt the very same rejection or outcasting as we do today. Some would say that his life was defined by rejection. His neighbors shunned him, his family questioned his sanity, and even his closest friends betrayed him. Or maybe it was because Jesus had an im- measurable understanding and insight into our desire for belonging, and he still does. Whatever the reason, make no mistake: Jesus went out of His way to embrace the unloved and unworthy. He went out of His way to be approachable to everyone and still does today. He is calling us to Himself right now, just as we are. Know this, Jesus is with you! He loves you more than you can possibly imagine! And from that place of being loved, we can love others as He does.
RESPOND:
- Do you feel left out, alone, rejected, or excluded?
- Have you ever felt like the woman in the crowd, not worthy enough to approach Jesus?
- What is keeping you from approaching Him with your longing to be known?
PRAYER:
Jesus, thank you for who you are. Thank you for your never-ending love and acceptance and understanding of who I am and how I feel. Jesus, so often the world creeps in on me and I feel like I just don’t belong or I am not desired by, not only those around me, but also you. My prayer today is for you to shed light on those lies, expose them for what they are – untruths. Remind me how much I am loved and how much you desire me. Remind me how accessible you are and how you desire for us to hang out and rest in your love and your truths. Amen.
