Keep Believing

And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.
(Mark 5:25-34)

Thought For Today:
I understand the desire that many people have to experience the kind of immediate healing that the woman in the story received when she touched Jesus. It's incredible to think about the hope and relief that moment must have brought her after twelve long years of suffering. It's natural for people to wonder about the difference between her experience and their own, especially if they have reached out to Jesus themselves but have not found the healing they hoped for. Was her faith stronger than someone else's faith?

Most of us reading the Bible would agree that the apostle Paul was a man of great faith. But when he asked Jesus to remove his thorn from his flesh, he was told, "My grace is sufficient for you" (2 Corinthians 12:9). Whatever it was, it was not taken from him, he was basically told to live with it. The man at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5) was in his condition for 38 years. The man lame at the Gate Beautiful (Acts 3) was about 40 years old before he was healed.

So how long should we be willing to wait for our healing? I pray that your healing comes quickly, but if not keep believing and trusting Jesus.