"Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed." (Mark 1:35)
This is just one example of many times in the Gospels we read of Jesus taking time to get away and spend time with His Father. It was a regular practice for Him. Jesus deemed it to be important to set aside time to talk to the Father.
It's a simple truth . . .
. . . If Jesus thought it was important to spend regular time with the Father when He walked on earth, then that's probably an indication that we should as well. If we're being transformed to be more and more in the image of God as we follow Him, then it makes sense that we make our priorities the same as the ones Jesus had when He was on earth.
I'll be the last one to tell you when you need to spend time with God. I'm also not one to tell you exactly what that time should look like. But, I will say that you need to have that time with God on a regular basis. The part about spending time with God isn't an option for those who claim to follow Him.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Pursuing Healing
Matthew 9:27-30 records Jesus healing people - something that was a regular part of His ministry when He was on earth.
As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, calling out, "have mercy on us, Son of David!"
When He had gone indoors, the blind men came to Him, and He asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
"Yes, Lord," they replied.
Then He touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith, let it be done to you"; and their sight was restored.
There's a few things that jump out to me from this story. It's always been one of my favourites.
I've always been encouraged by the boldness of these un-named blind men. They followed Jesus crying out for mercy. They wanted to see and they knew Jesus could make that happen, so they pursued Him for that healing.
That's an example we can follow. Pursuing Jesus for healing - not giving up on seeking Him for it. These men followed Him until they had the chance to ask Him.
They cried out for Jesus to have mercy on them and heal them. They knew that the healing was all about Jesus choosing to take an interest in them.
These two blind men had faith that Jesus could heal them. When Jesus asked them if they believed He could heal them, they were sure. They wouldn't have so boldly pursued Jesus if they didn't believe He could heal them.
These blind men had faith that they were willing to act on it. It wasn't just something they knew in their heads. It was something they believed to the core of who they were.
Their belief that was deep enough for them to act on, is an example we should want to follow in our lives. That's the kind of belief we're called to have. A belief that goes to the core of who we are and influences how we act.
Do you have a belief in your life that Jesus can heal you that causes to boldly pursue Him for it?
The truth is that Jesus is always capable of healing, but we don't always see the results we expect. We don't always get our sight restored, like the blind men did here. But, even then, we still need to choose to boldly pursue Jesus for healing. It might be difficult to keep seeking in those times, but that is what we called to do to exercise faith like the blind men in the story.
As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, calling out, "have mercy on us, Son of David!"
When He had gone indoors, the blind men came to Him, and He asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
"Yes, Lord," they replied.
Then He touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith, let it be done to you"; and their sight was restored.
There's a few things that jump out to me from this story. It's always been one of my favourites.
I've always been encouraged by the boldness of these un-named blind men. They followed Jesus crying out for mercy. They wanted to see and they knew Jesus could make that happen, so they pursued Him for that healing.
That's an example we can follow. Pursuing Jesus for healing - not giving up on seeking Him for it. These men followed Him until they had the chance to ask Him.
They cried out for Jesus to have mercy on them and heal them. They knew that the healing was all about Jesus choosing to take an interest in them.
These two blind men had faith that Jesus could heal them. When Jesus asked them if they believed He could heal them, they were sure. They wouldn't have so boldly pursued Jesus if they didn't believe He could heal them.
These blind men had faith that they were willing to act on it. It wasn't just something they knew in their heads. It was something they believed to the core of who they were.
Their belief that was deep enough for them to act on, is an example we should want to follow in our lives. That's the kind of belief we're called to have. A belief that goes to the core of who we are and influences how we act.
Do you have a belief in your life that Jesus can heal you that causes to boldly pursue Him for it?
The truth is that Jesus is always capable of healing, but we don't always see the results we expect. We don't always get our sight restored, like the blind men did here. But, even then, we still need to choose to boldly pursue Jesus for healing. It might be difficult to keep seeking in those times, but that is what we called to do to exercise faith like the blind men in the story.
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Desperate for Healing
A bit of a change from my usual writing style . . . an attempt at a bit of story writing . . .
_______________
"Who touched my clothes?"
The moment I touched just the corner of His cloak I knew I was healed. Somehow He knew it too. And now, He wanted to know who it was who had touched Him.
There's no way I could say it was me. Everyone know my issue. I shouldn't have even made my way into the crowd that day. I was unclean . . . isolated . . . alone.
Maybe if I just keep quiet and slip away, He'll forget about it and move on. Decide it was just the crowds of people pressing in around Him.
"Who touched Me?"
He asked again. He's not giving up on finding this out. His eyes are searching the crowd. I try to avoid making eye contact with Him.
It doesn't seem like He's going to give up on finding this person. I guess I have to admit it was me.
Terrified, I admit that it was me. I can feel the glares of those around me as I step forward. I shouldn't have been among them. I made them all unclean by daring to come to touch Him.
I expect judgement . . . condemnation. That's what I'm used to receiving. But not from Him. He looks at me with compassion.
I told Him everything. About what made me unclean - all the details - and how just touching the corner of His cloak had healed me.
"Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."
No judgement. No scorn. No shame.
Just love. Compassion. Everything I hadn't felt in twelve years, He restored in moments.
I had become so desperate for healing that I didn't care about the cost anymore. I was going to pursue Him so I could be healed. There was nothing that could hold me back any longer. That's why I broke the rules. I didn't care anymore about the rules. I just wanted to be healed, and when I touched His cloak I was.
_______________
I've read the story of Jesus healing the woman who had been bleeding for twelve years many time. Three of the gospels record it - Matthew 9:20-22, Mark 5:24-34, and Luke 8:43-48. Until I realized how desperate the woman would have been to do what she did, I didn't get the significance of Jesus calling her out.
This woman broke all of the cultural rules when she did this. She was the desperate to get to Jesus.
Jesus knew who she was. He was God. He didn't ask the question because He didn't know. He wanted the woman to speak up. In identifying her to the crowd around Him, Jesus was making it clear that no one is an outcast or has reason to live in shame in His kingdom. We can bring all our mess and pain to Him and He heals it and restores us to full life in His family.
The woman would never be the same again. And we won't be either if we bring our pain and our mess to Jesus for Him to heal.
But I don't think that anyone in that crowd would have been the same again if they had really been paying attention to what was going on. Jesus made it okay to admit our pain and mess so He can heal it. And He wants to restore the full life to us that He created us for.
And those stories of healing are then for us to share with others. To remind them of the hope that comes when we take our mess, our pain, our shame to Jesus and allow Him to heal it. Our desperation for healing, produces stories that show the truth of what God's kingdom is all about.
_______________
"Who touched my clothes?"
The moment I touched just the corner of His cloak I knew I was healed. Somehow He knew it too. And now, He wanted to know who it was who had touched Him.
There's no way I could say it was me. Everyone know my issue. I shouldn't have even made my way into the crowd that day. I was unclean . . . isolated . . . alone.
Maybe if I just keep quiet and slip away, He'll forget about it and move on. Decide it was just the crowds of people pressing in around Him.
"Who touched Me?"
He asked again. He's not giving up on finding this out. His eyes are searching the crowd. I try to avoid making eye contact with Him.
It doesn't seem like He's going to give up on finding this person. I guess I have to admit it was me.
Terrified, I admit that it was me. I can feel the glares of those around me as I step forward. I shouldn't have been among them. I made them all unclean by daring to come to touch Him.
I expect judgement . . . condemnation. That's what I'm used to receiving. But not from Him. He looks at me with compassion.
I told Him everything. About what made me unclean - all the details - and how just touching the corner of His cloak had healed me.
"Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."
No judgement. No scorn. No shame.
Just love. Compassion. Everything I hadn't felt in twelve years, He restored in moments.
I had become so desperate for healing that I didn't care about the cost anymore. I was going to pursue Him so I could be healed. There was nothing that could hold me back any longer. That's why I broke the rules. I didn't care anymore about the rules. I just wanted to be healed, and when I touched His cloak I was.
_______________
I've read the story of Jesus healing the woman who had been bleeding for twelve years many time. Three of the gospels record it - Matthew 9:20-22, Mark 5:24-34, and Luke 8:43-48. Until I realized how desperate the woman would have been to do what she did, I didn't get the significance of Jesus calling her out.
This woman broke all of the cultural rules when she did this. She was the desperate to get to Jesus.
Jesus knew who she was. He was God. He didn't ask the question because He didn't know. He wanted the woman to speak up. In identifying her to the crowd around Him, Jesus was making it clear that no one is an outcast or has reason to live in shame in His kingdom. We can bring all our mess and pain to Him and He heals it and restores us to full life in His family.
The woman would never be the same again. And we won't be either if we bring our pain and our mess to Jesus for Him to heal.
But I don't think that anyone in that crowd would have been the same again if they had really been paying attention to what was going on. Jesus made it okay to admit our pain and mess so He can heal it. And He wants to restore the full life to us that He created us for.
And those stories of healing are then for us to share with others. To remind them of the hope that comes when we take our mess, our pain, our shame to Jesus and allow Him to heal it. Our desperation for healing, produces stories that show the truth of what God's kingdom is all about.
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