Loading today's devotional...
No devotional available for this date.
Faith That Reaches Out and Touches
Where We Are
We return to Mark's Gospel on this Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time, resuming our weekday journey through Mark's account of Jesus' ministry in Galilee. Yesterday we heard of Jesus calming the storm and healing the Gerasene demoniac. Now, back on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, two dramatic healings unfold, one nested inside the other. The first reading continues our weekday cycle through the books of Samuel, as David mourns the death of his rebellious son Absalom.
The Word
In the first reading, David's grief over Absalom's death is raw and devastating: a father mourning a lost child, even one who rebelled against him. The psalm responds with a cry for God's mercy. In the Gospel, two stories of desperation intertwine. Jairus, a synagogue official, falls at Jesus' feet begging him to heal his dying daughter. On the way, a woman who had suffered from hemorrhaging for twelve years reaches out in the crowd and touches Jesus' cloak. Her bleeding immediately stops. Jesus feels power go out from him and calls her forward, telling her that her faith has saved her. Then word arrives that Jairus's daughter has died, but Jesus tells Jairus not to fear, only to believe. At the house, he takes the girl's hand and raises her back to life.
Continue Reading
Sign in to read the full devotional and receive it in your inbox each morning - a quiet moment of reflection to start your day.
By signing in, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Reflect
These two healings, brilliantly interwoven by Mark, reveal the power of desperate faith. The hemorrhaging woman had spent everything she had on doctors for twelve years with no relief. Under Jewish purity laws, her condition made her ritually unclean; touching anyone would transfer that uncleanness. Yet she reached out anyway. Her faith was not polished or theologically sophisticated; it was raw, risky, and born of desperation. And Jesus honored it completely.
Jairus, meanwhile, was a respected synagogue leader, a man of status and reputation. Yet when his daughter lay dying, all of that fell away. He prostrated himself before Jesus, a traveling preacher, in front of the crowd. Both the woman and Jairus had to move past what others might think and act on what they believed in their hearts.
Notice how Jesus responds. To the woman, he does not scold her for touching him while unclean. He calls her "daughter," a term of tenderness and belonging. To Jairus, he says, "Do not be afraid; just believe." In both cases, Jesus meets people at the point of their greatest need and asks only for trust. Our own encounters with Christ often follow this same pattern. It is precisely when we run out of options and reach out in desperate honesty that we find his healing power most real.
Living It
Today, reflect on where desperation might actually be an invitation to deeper faith. First, identify an area of your life where you have tried everything and still feel stuck. Bring that situation to God honestly, without pretending to have it together. Second, notice if pride or fear of what others think is keeping you from asking for help, whether from God or from another person. Jairus laid down his reputation; the woman risked public shame. What might you need to lay down? Third, if someone reaches out to you in need today, respond with the warmth Jesus showed: call them by name and affirm their courage.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, we reach out to you in our need, trusting that your power and compassion are greater than our struggles. Give us the courage of the woman who touched your cloak and the humility of Jairus who fell at your feet. When fear whispers that it is too late, help us hear your voice: "Do not be afraid; just believe." Heal what is broken in us and restore us to fullness of life. Amen.
Signed in as ·
