Never underestimate how much Jesus cares for you. In Mark 5 we read about the simple prayer of a women in need. Her prayer was simple, a heart cry; “Jesus please help me.” Let’s look at three factors involved in this simple prayer:
- THE INSIGNIFICANCE FACTOR – Mark 5:21-26
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.
Consider the plight of the leading lady in this drama. She was lost in the crowd, sick with no end in sight, all alone, her illness was getting worse and she had run out of money. She is a nobody to everybody except to One Somebody and that Somebody was Jesus. The One Somebody that matters. Jesus cared for her and he cares for you more than you will ever know.
We all feel insignificant, either some of the time or all the time, and it can manifest itself in many ways: fear, hopelessness, discouragement, uselessness, worthlessness, feeling unwanted, unneeded, unappreciated, and alone. It can feel that God doesn’t care and yet that is not true. Never underestimate His love and care for you. He created you, He died for you, He has big plans for you in this life as long as you are alive, and He has made preparations for you on the other side.
- THE RISK FACTOR – Mark 5:27-30
When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
Notice that she tried to steal a miracle. She wasn’t even supposed to be there. She thought that all she needed to do was to reach out and touch His clothes.
She risked several things just for this moment. She risked being found out and even being kicked out just to reach out and ask for healing. Are you willing to reach out and ask Jesus for help? This woman placed her trust in Jesus and so should we. He came for her and He came for us.
- THE FAITH FACTOR – Mark 5:31-34
“You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ” But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Jesus stated ‘Your faith has healed you’. Some teach that it is all about you and your faith. But actually it is not about you, it’s about Him. It is not how much faith we have as if we’re the power source. No, it is WHO we place our faith in. Faith is about our belief and trust in Jesus as our all-powerful and all-loving God.
Max Lucado says, “Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the one who hears it and not in the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference”.
Where do you need a miracle? Step out in faith and ask God to meet your need. He cares about you more than you will ever know.