Yesterday I wrote about incremental growth. Today, I saw one secret to experiencing that growth as illustrated in the woman with the internal bleeding, Luke 8.43 – 48. Here’s the key section:
In the crowd that day was a woman who had suffered greatly for twelve years from slow bleeding. Even though she had spent all that she had on healers, she was still suffering. 44 Pressing in through the crowd, she came up behind Jesus and touched the tassel[c] of his prayer shawl. Instantly her bleeding stopped and she was healed. (Luke 8.43, 44, Passion Translation)
Two things impressed me:
- First, she hadn’t given up. She’d had the disease for 12 years. She’d spent all she had on healers, meaning she kept trying. Finally, she decided to try “The Great Healer.”
- Second, she took action. She didn’t sit by the side of the road to see if Jesus would notice her. She pressed in through the crowd. Faith isn’t passively waiting, it’s taking action.
In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2.17, NIV)
So good. There is an awesome painting of this scene in a small church near Galilee and near the house of Peter’s mother. (I think – it’s all a blur!) The mural only shows the bottom of the scene. Jesus’ robe from the waist down and the woman stooping and touching the tassel. You see his feet and her hands and face and robed body. Such a moving mural! I will never forget it!