DAY Fifty- Two: Who Touched Me?
“‘A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26She 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. 27When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. 30At 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?’ ”32But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.” (Mark 5:30-32, NIV)
Every week thousands, maybe even millions of people gather in a church, synagogue, or auditorium to encounter God. And, the chief goal for most is to receive a “touch from God.” Without question, this is understandable. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be supernaturally changed by the hand of God. Which makes the truth from the above text so amazing … Jesus stopped to acknowledge and identify the one who touched Him.
Notice that the disciples were not tracking with Jesus and were completely confused by His question. You and I would have been as well. Jesus was in the midst of people crowding around Him for a “touch.” And yet a woman who had been suffering from an illness for years caught His attention. Her pressing in was a bit different. Broken by a prolonged period of sickness and shrowded with the garments of disappointment and hopelessness, she touched Jesus.
Think about that for a moment! In her deepest pain, she pressed into Jesus. She touched Him. How did she have the courage to push past her gut-wrenching experiences with the natural to dare believe that Jesus could (or even would) do perform the supernatural for her? Please understand, She didn’t want a word; she needed transformation. There is a difference, A BIG DIFFERENCE! One will encourage you, and the other will compel Jesus to stop and take note. And change everything! My question for you is, “are you pressing in for encouragement or transformation?”
Will the type of pursuit you offer daily compel Jesus to stop and acknowledge He was touched, or even better, celebrate that power has left Him? Are you BOLDLY seeking Him, daring to ask Him for the supernatural? Let me encourage you to do so, and take notice of the fact that when you do, Jesus stops and looks right in your direction
Blessings,
Andy Smith