She Chased Hope

He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” – Mark 5:34, NRSV

There was once a woman. She was very sick, hemorrhaging for twelve years. She has become an inspiration to me.

I was recently at the Women of Faith conference where Nicole C. Mullen said that she knows about this woman, too. She said, “There is a difference in running after Jesus to get something and coming before Him to get what He wants to give me”.

This woman in Mark 5 ran after Jesus knowing one thing, He could heal her. She was not wrong. This hemorrhaging woman pushed her way through a crowd that was, “pressing in” on Jesus. She had nothing to lose. The doctors had subjected her to everything imaginable. She kept getting worse whether it was just the nature of her disease or the treatments that she suffered through. Do you know anyone like this?

I do, in my own way.

I have talked about the last year couple of years in some earlier posts (One Year Ago, My Backiversary, ). I remember sitting in doctor’s offices initially reading the pain questionnaires. It was a 1 to 10, circle your guesstimate. One was “some pain” and ten was, “I have suicidal thoughts”. That puts into perspective, right? For the first several months I could not believe that ten’s description was even on the sheet.

Then time passed, and my pain became excruciating. Chronic pain and illness does something to your mind that nothing else can. Things that you never considered become tangible to you. I remember thinking, “If I did not have Jesus, there is no way this would be worth it”. There are so many people who go through this without Him. I saw them, hard and hopeless. That broke my heart.

So, I understand this determined woman. I understand pressing and shoving her way to His robe. This woman did what many can only dream. Single mindedly she chased Him down. As I read this story, I silently cheer her on. She is chasing hope.

Do you have a reason to chase hope? Emotional, physical, miscarriages or abuse? Chronic pain and suffering? Sadness and broken heartedness? Everyone has a reason for hope.

When she catches up to Jesus, she reaches out. This was what she was betting on. This was her moment and she believed, ahead of time, that this was her healing. Can you imagine? Can you see her face? The cloak was in her hand, and it happened. She knew in the same moment that the bleeding stopped.

I remember when I woke up from my surgery and they told me to walk off the table. I, confused, had no other recourse than to chase my hope. I got off the table and walked. I had not walked in a month. The last thing I remembered was meeting the doctors, barely; and, now, I was healed. After all of that time and pain, it was so hard to believe.

And, even though this sick woman believed, I know she was stunned. Her world was different from the twelve years preceding that moment. The crowd pressed around her as she took it in.

Jesus knew that “power has gone forth from Him”. He looks for her and she is hiding in the crowd. She has been bold, and He is gentle.

Daughter.

Your faith has made you well.

Then He blesses her. Jesus did not just let her sneak away or fall into the crowd. Would that have been a complete healing? Jesus is not like that, is He? He deals with us face-to-face. Daughter, I have something to say to you…

I think that the most interesting thing that Jesus says is this last bit, “and be healed of your disease”. He did not heal her in that moment, though. She was already healed by the power that He released to her. She had stopped bleeding when she held His robe. So, what is this all about? Could this be the difference in running after Him and coming before Him?

Dusting off some seminary Greek…be healed is an imperative statement. He is not healing her, but saying something to her. Be healed! Live healed! The Greek word for “healed” means “whole”. The wholeness of God is being offered to her. Take it!

Daughter. Your faith made you chase your hope. You found me. I want for you to be blessed and peaceful now. That part of your life is over and it is time for you to be whole. Live whole. Live healthy, soundly.

We are in the process of sanctification. We are living to look more like Him. I could write a book on the role of sickness in this. One of the most common misconceptions on this topic is our expectation of healing. Sometimes there are “reasons for hope" that do not go away altogether. We have the memories of it, and sometimes the evidences. I have permanent damage, which I am oddly grateful for because it could be so much worse. I, also, have a testimony that was crafted for me. It is His story of love for me, His daughter.

Is there an area of your life that you have chased down your hope and experienced healing? Are you in this process?

God, I was happy to meet with my heroine, today. I am so grateful that she is included as a moment of encouragement in a suffering world. I pray that you and I will come before Jesus to let Him give the healing and wholeness that He desires for us.