If Only! Part I

Mark 5:25-34

Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction. And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?” But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” NKJV

Have you ever gotten to a point where the following words; disappointment, discouragement, frustration and desperation probably lost meaning and you don’t know which of the four phases you are going through at any one given time? Well! Kindly allow me to indulge you for a moment by visiting friendly sites called the wikipedia and thesaurus for consultations and definition of those four infamous words.

Disappointment is the feeling of dissatisfaction that follows the failure of expectations to manifest. Similar to regret, it differs in that the individual feeling regret focuses primarily on the personal choices that contributed to a poor outcome, while the individual feeling disappointment focuses on the outcome itself.

Discouragement according to Thesaurus is: the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles.

Frustration: Wikipedia describes frustration as: a common emotional response to opposition. Related to anger and disappointment, it arises from the perceived resistance to the fulfillment of individual will.

Desperation: Having lost all hope; despairing; the condition of being desperate; Recklessness arising from despair.

The woman in the passages above went through all the four stages of emotions and feelings put in one big bag. I presume she was a woman of substance because she could afford a battery of physicians, after one disappointed her she went another and to another until she was broke. Her problem never abated, it seemed to be laughing at her. All the money was gone but the disease was still there, it showed no sign of letting up, in fact her condition was worsening by the day.

What a terrible predicament this lady faced in the hands of quacks masquerading as physicians. It is however very encouraging to note that despite her condition and feelings this lady was not ready to call it quits, never did the idea occur to her. I really like her guts, don’t you? Different doctors different diagnosis and treatment. This was enough to demoralize the strongest of them all as it were but not her.

I got this quote from the Wikipedia explaining further about frustration; perhaps it can help us unravel the mystery that this lady was and what exactly drove her. “The greater the obstruction, and the greater the will, the more the frustration is likely to be. Causes of frustration may be internal or external. In people, internal frustration may arise from challenges in fulfilling personal goals and desires, instinctual drives and needs, or dealing with perceived deficiencies, such as a lack of confidence or fear of social situations” end of quote. This captures our lady’s exact circumstances and situation.

Remember the Mosaic Law prohibited her from going to the temple because of the issue of blood that was made her ritually unclean. She was bleeding continuously for a whole twelve years meaning that she had fewer or no visitors because she could not fellowship with anybody in her state of impurity. Even members of her own family could not touch her because by so doing they too would have been unclean. This must have been a very lonely time for her.

She was stigmatized both physically and spiritually. She could not share the word of God with anyone; she could not associate closely with anybody. Surely this is a dog’s life for this lady, but she quite tenacious, I grant her that. Her money was gone without any healing, her friends and family were also gone, what did she have left?

Nothing, just rivulets of blood pouring out of her body, her life were ebbing away slowly as she looked on. For the Bible says in Leviticus 17:11 that for the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.’ (NKJV). She was dying slowly, bit by bit, drop by drop. Not exactly good news, the situation was becoming graver by the hour by the day.

Let’s come back to her tenacious character that defeated all these odds, she never stopped searching, even when people expelled her she was still searched for her healing. She dared to hope even when nothing was showing up. She lived in hope that somewhere somehow she would get well, she felt that she had to live to tell the story of her life. I am sure she had declared to herself; I am going to live, I won’t die, and I refuse to die!

Somehow and anyhow was not her problem but well, she had to get well and that’s all that mattered, that was the only thought occupied her mind. In her quest and searching she heard about Jesus and she knew unequivocally that the answer to her long drawn dilemma was at hand; and this forms the basis of my topic today.

Somehow she knew for sure, I don’t know if it was instinctive or not but somehow she knew that the end of her twelve year ordeal had finally come. Twelve years of searching and not getting results could have made her a skeptic, but the skepticism is not quite apparent here. There is only apprehension about how to get past the multitudes that was thronging Jesus at that. Remember that this is somebody who was considerably emancipated by the disease for a dozen years.

Imagine the jostling, pushing and pulling that was there and also considering her state of weakness all not withstanding she purposed that she must reach Him somehow. Without doubt or wavering of purpose, she single minded sought to reach her final destination; can you bet how many obstacles were blocking her way? Immense!

In her heart there was only this wish written in capital letters “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” she had lost everything in an effort to have her health restored, she had nothing left, nothing at all and perhaps even her strength was about to fail her. This lady didn’t desire much, only to touch His clothes. She didn’t want Jesus to lay His hands on her or any such stuff; she only needed to touch His clothes. It was a simple but rather difficult task to accomplish under the circumstances.

What a modest request this is? What kind of faith is this coming from somebody who had lost hope in all human being but was driven by a strong desire to get well; all of a sudden there was a glimmer of hope materializing before her very eyes? Her future was taking shape again but there was this major obstacle to surmount, the multitude around Jesus.

The final hurdle to the finishing line was proving to be more challenging. A mirage in the desert, she should have felt that way. Why does there have to be so many people when I desperately need only to touch the clothes of Jesus? Why now, common people move, give way, excuse me please I need to reach the Master but the shoving and pushing kept on and on; the pressure mounted, her heart thumbing on overdrive, her energy levels dwindling but she kept on and on.

One way or the other, somehow, by some kind of miracle this lady got to Jesus for she was sure that she had found the cure to her problems free. Having spent/lost all her savings pursuing some nonexistent, elusive healing and The Healer was so near her yet so far. So far because she was ritually unclean and could not be seen brushing shoulders with other people openly.

Imagine her anticipation, I have suffered long enough and God has remembered me at last. And maybe when she analyzed her previous expenditures vis-à-vis the way she received her healing after touching His clothes, such scripture as this from Prophet Isaiah could have a new meaning for he says in: Isaiah 55:1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; and you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come; buy wine and milk without money and without price. This wonderful work, this powerful prophecy got a new meaning to this lady on that day. Maybe she had heard such a Word before and thought nothing of it.

I don’t blame her for forgetting such a powerful word because we also do forget from time to time, we receive the Word of God but we don’t fully appreciate or put much weight to it because our circumstance are okay but wait until the situation changes. We then desperately need such a comforting word but due to pressures we are under we can’t find it anywhere. Let’s learn to appreciate the word when all is okay with us.

Her joy must have been rapturously sweet to savor but before that she was caught in the act for Jesus though thronged by multitude perceived power had gone out of Him. His disciples who didn’t neither know nor realize how much power was in His self if they did they could not have asked a sarcastic question like this “How can ask who touched You? Look at the crowd and see for your self?

Her apprehension was more intense now fearing for her life as the repercussions of breaking the law by mixing with other people while in her unclean state were severe. Surely she should have thought oh my God! I have been nabbed, now what do I do. Yes I feel I have been made whole, but my escape to enjoy my new found freedom was blocked, I’ve been found out. I know she could have easily said ‘please give me a break! I have done nothing wrong; after all I only touched Your clothes just like these other people nothing special you know”

She could have thought like that but she knew her time was out; the only solution was to own up and wait for whatever followed. In her fear she could have blunted out such as ‘Sir, you know I am a poor women who has been sick for a long time. All physicians in town conned me of all money and my condition didn’t improve. Kind Sir here am at you feet have mercy on me and so forth and so forth. She could have given a litany of her woes but Jesus was not interested in all her actions He saw faith in action!

A pastor friend of mine once said Jesus is a gentleman, in this case He didn’t listen to His disciples or the multitudes but He asked:’ Who touched Me?’” And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

Imagine the relief and shame she felt, like a sneaking thief caught with a hand in a cookie jar. Ouch that was close! Jesus view of this woman was very interesting in itself: And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” Everybody else took her to be a sneaky ‘healing power thief’ and any other label you would want to give her actions but Jesus saw a woman of great faith who deserved everything she got and much more!! Isn’t this wonderful, really awesome?

Who could in his/her wildest imagination expect such a cool answer from one whose power had just been stolen? She was changed from being a weakly, sneaky and sickly power snatcher to a woman of great faith worthy commendation from none other than the Teacher of all teachers, the Master of all masters, the Lord of all lords, wow! What an honor, what an elevation. It is a great feeling though confusing a little to the uninitiated in this school of thought.

Welcome! Your initiation programme is as brief as this:  Brethren I want us to see Jesus in this light; that He wants us to reach our end before He can interfere with our affairs for He shares His glory with no human being. He wants us to realize the futility of our actions or inactions and fully surrender to His will as soon as possible. The sooner we are able to do that the better for us, the longer we continue searching for our own remedies the longer we suffer while help is at hand but we are reluctant to reach out for it.

I kindly beg you, stop struggling with issues that you can’t finish even if you are given a whole lifetime and surrender such to Jesus. Say like that women if only I can touch His clothes and transfer my problems to Him for He is more than able to solve them for you. Remember it took this woman all her resources (which you might or might not have) and twelve of shame and isolation to realize that the solution to all her suffering lay with just One man who couldn’t be easily distinguished in the crowd. There was nothing physical to tell this was Christ or not until you heard Him or His word.

Again ask yourself how many other people were thronging Him? How many of them had issues like that woman and were not healed as this woman? I am sure that she was not the only one with unresolved issues in crowd who required Jesus’ attention, many had but they didn’t have her kind of faith. She had faith that saw beyond the obvious, faith that discerned time correctly to know that her time to receive her healing was at hand. Know that time had come to be relieved of all her troubles, of all the cares of this life, everything.

You have to shed your gentleman/lady attitude and stuff, had the lady waited for the gentleman’s courteous saying ‘ladies first’ she could have hemorrhaged to death. She shed her ladylike mannerism and got into the fray to reach her final healing. For Jesus is on record saying this in: Matthew 11:12 and from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. Just think for once what could have happened if this woman had just stood there and watched helplessly feeling helplessly sorry for herself; could she have received her healing? No.

I am not saying courtesy is outdated here; no far from it, but when require something you must willing to get some dirt under your nice clipped nails. My boss sometimes used to say ‘if you need something done quite badly sometimes you had better do it yourself that way you’re sure it was done’ not that he disliked delegation but he had experienced disappointment in the saying ‘I did my best’ and yet nothing gets done. Somebody else’s best could be your worst! A true nightmare.

Now, before I rest my case about this lady, I wish to point out that Jesus didn’t go looking for this lady but she came to Him. Using this as a pointer we learn that Jesus, being the gentlemen He is, will not meddle in other people’s affair until they come to Him themselves. So please learn to let go sooner than later and again shed off your sense of pride and adorn humility in order to be assisted. It is easier that way guys, Jesus is the Master you are the subject and such things don’t change overnight.

Don’t say if only and stop at that point. There is much more to the words than just saying them, act! Don’t just act but act out of faith, faith that it will work out well for you. Jesus never lies, whatever He says He will do surely He will fulfill. For the Bible says He is faithful Him who promises. 1 Thessalonians 5:24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

With that assurance may I to end this devotional by a word of prayer for you. Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ I thank you for the readers of this devotional. May you dear God fulfill their wishes in your own name. Bless them as they go and as they come. Guide them by your mighty hand to their abundance in You, both spiritually and physically. I pray this trusting in Jesus name. AMEN.

This devotional was written by Bishop Joseph Koburu Mukiira of Maximum Victory and Joy Worship Centre Nairobi, Kenya and brought to you courtesy of Journey 2 Joy International Ministries Inc. USA

©All rights reserved by Bishop Joseph Mukiira

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