Read (from the New Living Translation)

⁴³ A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. ⁴⁴ Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped.

⁴⁵ “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.

Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” ⁴⁷ When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. ⁴⁸ “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”

Luke 8:43-48

Go Deep

Bekah from The Wally Show is back, sharing how her constant need to apologize may have resulted in a wrong assumption about God.

I apologize to walls.

I never mean to, but because I have the constant fear of being an inconvenience, my natural response is to always apologize–even when I’ve done nothing wrong.

I do the same thing with the big “life stuff” as well. Even when my husband’s health deteriorated earlier this year and we spent the total of a month’s time in the hospital, I feel like I have to apologize for complaining about it.

This has been especially true as I find myself in this new role as a caregiver. These past 6 months have been really, really hard. Every week, I feel like I reach a new level of exhaustion, and it’s hard to stay optimistic as new challenges come. But I’m not the one who’s sick…so who am I to think the pain I’m experiencing is worth it?

I even transfer this thought process to God, even though I know better. Since my struggle isn’t as bad as someone else’s, I’ll just slip my mess in as a footnote.

I wonder if that’s how the woman in Luke 8 felt. She had been sick for 12 years. 12 years! That’s definitely way worse than I have it. At the time, though, Jesus was on his way to the house of a young girl who was dying, so who was this woman to make a scene? But she knew He could heal her, so she touched his robe. She had incredible faith, even if she felt like an inconvenience.

Jesus saw that, and He saw her. And he sees me. And he sees you. And it feels so good to be seen.

And the God who knit you together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139) and knows the number of hairs on your head (Matthew 10:29-31), also hears our prayers—even if they’re just a footnote.

Notes from the Beyond Suffering Bible

Sympathy for Our Plight – God’s sympathy for his children includes a special grace toward those who suffer. Although the central point of Jesus’ earthly mission was to provide redemption and eternal life for sinners (19:10), along the way he encountered multitudes of individuals and families coping with various forms of suffering. His response was to reach out with care, compassion, and a healing touch.

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