To Be Made Wellنموونە

How can distractions keep us from healing?

Have you ever had pain in your body or your spirit that just won’t go away? Maybe your lower back aches, or maybe there’s a relationship that always ends in hurt or anger, or maybe you read the news each day and your heart breaks over the brokenness in the world around you.

In Mark 5:24–26, we meet a woman who has also endured pain and heartache for many years: “A large crowd followed and pressed around [Jesus]. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She 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.”

This woman goes through twelve years of searching in the wrong places and finding answers that do not satisfy her. Then she realizes that she needs Jesus’ touch, but she almost misses out on it because of the crowds.

Distraction. Busyness. Entertainment. Self-medication. The allure of our digital world, the emotional numbness from endless scrolling, the temporary relief from a glass of wine—all of these things can keep us from coming to Jesus to receive a deeper work of healing.

We can find ourselves in the bleeding woman, almost hopeless in the face of years of the same dysfunctional patterns and painful relationships and physical hardships, allowing the distractions of everyday life to numb our pain instead of prompting us to surrender to healing.

But there is hope for us, even when the crowds of distraction and numbness and busyness press in.

This woman is impeded by the crowds. But Jesus is nearby. And as we will soon see, all she needs is to reach out through the crowds and touch his garment to be made well.

Questions for reflection:

What is an area of physical, emotional, or relational pain in your life where you would like to experience healing?

What crowds out Jesus in your life?

Prayer: Lord, amid the distractions and busyness of my everyday life, I come to you. I have only a little faith, but I’ve tried so hard to make it better on my own, and it hasn’t worked. Help me, Jesus. Amen.