Luke 8:49–50

Luke 8:49-50 

English Standard Version 

  There's so many different verses where I think that I've come across the most challenging teaching or command of Jesus yet.  This one is certainly on the list... Jairus has just found out that his daughter is dead, and the first thing that Jesus says is:  do not fear.  The only person who can say such a thing is one that knows that death is just a veil, not something permanent, not something definitive.  But that's a hard thing for us to grasp, and I'm sure that's why Jesus tells this directly to Jairus -- before the fear can sneak in and tear him apart, Jairus needs to focus on Jesus, to trust in him.

  I have questions as to why Jesus didn't do something before this, or why Jesus doesn't do this more often, or why Jesus doesn't intervene today... but those are questions where the answers remain shrouded in mystery.  For the moment, I try, in the midst of my fear, to hear these words of Jesus to me.  Do not fear, only believe.  In the midst of all the other voices trying to have me focus on them, in the midst of all the doubt that I have... do not fear, only believe.

Luke 8:46–48

Luke 8:46-48 

English Standard Version 

  I wonder how this story might've been different if Jesus hadn't stopped.  Imagine that the woman was healed and Jesus never said anything.  She certainly wouldn't have become the center of attention, which she might have preferred, but perhaps she wouldn't have realized that Jesus was using the physical healing to restore her to community.  He speaks to her with a tenderness that she might not have heard for years. She calls her daughter, for her healing is physical and spiritual -- she once more is not isolated, but is a full member of society -- what a tremendous gift that Jesus has given her.  The whole community sees this and can celebrate with her.  She can truly go in peace.  

  What kind of peace is your soul longing for?  How can Jesus give us back to a community, restoring relationships that have been broken for any number of reasons?  Jesus heals the vertical and horizontal rifts in our society, and we are not the same after an encounter with the divine.  When we pray for healing, for our own and for others, may we look for ways that God is changing the way we interact with one another while we anticipate physical healing as well.

Out of Control Cars and the Gospel

Luke 8:43–45

Luke 8:43-45 

English Standard Version 

  Yesterday, we had a man who had prospered in society throwing himself down before Jesus.  Here we have a woman who is on the other end of the societal spectrum, and she is in the same place, throwing herself before Jesus.  

  What's amazing to me is that Jesus notices.  We so often feel so insignificant, and we wonder if God would care about us... but Jesus knows us and knows our needs and attends to us, even in the midst of the chaotic busy-ness of life.  I cannot promise you that Jesus will fix everything about you in a moment like this... but Jesus does promise that he will be with us, that he loves us, and that even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we need not fear.  

  The disciples wondered if Jesus could notice such things, given the crowds.  But the Good Shepherd knows his flock, and pursues every lost sheep with love and patience.