Mark 5:21-34

Can you imagine bleeding for 12 straight years? That’s 4,380 days of a non-stop menstrual cycle. Can you just imagine? Recently, I came across the Bible story of the woman who had this exact issue. “The Woman with the Issue of Blood,” as she is commonly known.

As a short recap, this unnamed woman (we’ll call her “The Woman” for short) had been bleeding for 12 years without stopping. She had spent all of her money on treatments to stop the bleeding, but nothing had worked, and the book of Mark tells us that at the point that she encounters Jesus, she had actually gotten worse, not better. (Mark 5:26). As Jesus is passing through an area where she is, surrounded by a crowd, she presses her way through the crowd, believing he can heal her. But she doesn’t confront him or ask him directly for healing. She reaches out only to touch him, believing that just touching Jesus’ clothes will be enough to heal her illness, even if Jesus doesn’t directly speak to her or even know of her. (Mark 5:27-28). So she touches his clothes, and instantly feels healing in her body. (Mark 5:29). Jesus, despite being surrounded by people, feels the healing power leave him and, somewhat ironically, asks “who touched me?” (Mark 5:30). After some confusion, The Woman eventually comes forward and confesses to Jesus that she touched him, and in response, instead of berating her, he tells her that her faith has healed her and that she can go in peace. (Mark 5:32-34).

So many thoughts came up as I was reading this story. First, I’ll start with my thoughts about the concept of intention. This scripture passage tells us that a “large crowd was following [Jesus] and pressing against him.” (Mark 5:24). People were crowding Jesus and were pressing against him, yet when The Woman touched him, he instantly sensed that power had left his body. (Mark 5:30). What was the difference between this woman’s touch and everyone else’s? Her intention. This woman reached out to touch Jesus, believing she could be healed. She believed that Jesus could heal her, and she reached out with the intention of grabbing some of that healing power for herself. It was almost like theft by faith, if that can be considered a thing– but more on that later.

The spirit of intention that weaves itself throughout The Woman’s story can be lifted from the pages of the Bible and neatly transposed onto our own lives. Like The Woman, we hurt, we suffer, we struggle through problems and issues, some of which plague us for a long time. We may not always choose the best course of action in trying to handle our problems. I know The Woman can’t be the only person who has thrown money at solutions that simply did not work. Even her approach to Jesus might be considered a little “off.” I mean, she really tried to steal his healing power. But Jesus saw her heart; he saw the intention behind her actions. And he saw her faith. She knew that Jesus was the solution and was willing to do anything to get to him and access his power. Likewise, Jesus knows our hearts and sees our intentions. When we seek him earnestly, and believe in his power, just like The Woman, he can feel it, immediately. And when Jesus does touch our hearts, they are healed, and we can go forward in peace, just like The Woman. When we approach life’s situations with an earnest desire for Jesus’ help and healing power, he notices. He picks up on our heart’s intention and our yearning for him, and allows his power to flow through us to heal us and help us live this life, for his glory. Thank you, God, for the ability to reach out to your son Jesus and receive his holy, healing power. Amen.