A Finger's Touch
An image passed through my mind in a leadership meeting when someone shared a story about how special it was to hold their father's finger as a small child. It made me think of what is shared in Luke 8:40-49. I will never forget the image of Jesus surrounded by a crowd of people wanting to hear what He had to say or be healed from their ailments. A timid woman approached the back of Him and touched the edge of His cloak and instantly she was healed. In the middle of the multitudes, Jesus said, "Who touched me?" Surprised His disciples said, "What do you mean Master? The people are crowding and pressing against you." But Jesus looked around and responded, "Someone touched me; I know the power has gone out of me." Then a woman who had suffered from bleeding for twelve long years slowly came forward knowing that she could not stay hidden. Trembling she lay down at Jesus' feet crying. "Lord, it was I," she said, "I have suffered for so many years. I've gone to many doctors but none of them have healed me. I knew that if I touched even your garment I would be healed so I pushed my way through the crowds until I could reach you and when I did I bent down and touched the hem of your robe." She must have been terrified about what Jesus' and the crowd's response would be because in Bible times according to the Levitical laws bleeding meant that a person was unclean. Any bed she lay on and anything she touched was unclean. This meant that she was shunned and couldn't go out in public and be with other people. Attending church was also not allowed. She had been unclean for twelve long years. She came to Him filled with fear because by law she wasn't even supposed to be around people. But Jesus responded with grace and kindness. I'm sure He must have had a huge smile on His face when He said, "Your faith has made you well, go in peace."
I love this story because it is a reminder to me of what God wants each of us to do. He aches for us to reach out to Him to receive the healing and help that we need. This woman knew that she didn't have to have a hug from Him or a handshake from Him. All she needed was to touch a small piece of His robe and she would be healed. Her lifetime of ailment was gone forever. Her isolation from society was also removed. She was free. God had healed her and restored her lonely, hopeless life.
As I think about this I am reminded that every day we must make a conscious effort to reach out to Jesus. Maybe it means taking His hand, or His finger, or the hem of His robe or maybe we just need to sit in His lap and be surrounded by His arms of love. Whatever it is we must not lose sight of Jesus or lose the ability to remember that at any time all we have to do is call or reach out to Him and He will come to our aid. He aches to hear our voices and to see us reaching out to Him. May we never forget this imagery in our day to day lives. All we have to do is call out to Him and He will be right there by our sides to help us.
