Church programs for Monday, Jan. 22 will resume their normal schedule at all locations this evening.
Leawood’s Sunday night in-person worship has been moved to 4 pm for Sunday, February 11.
During Lent, we are using short videos to share a daily idea (linked to the gospel of Luke) on how to grow spiritually. Watch today’s video. Click here or on the image below:
Note: We are reading the entire gospel of Luke in the GPS. Some day’s readings are longer than usual. We hope you’ll have an extra cup of coffee, or use your lunch break, and read Luke’s entire story of Jesus.
40 When Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they had been waiting for him. 41 A man named Jairus, who was a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet. He pleaded with Jesus to come to his house 42 because his only daughter, a twelve-year-old, was dying.
As Jesus moved forward, he faced smothering crowds. 43 A woman was there who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had spent her entire livelihood on doctors, but no one could heal her. 44 She came up behind him and touched the hem of his clothes, and at once her bleeding stopped.
45 “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.
When everyone denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds are surrounding you and pressing in on you!”
46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me. I know that power has gone out from me.”
47 When the woman saw that she couldn’t escape notice, she came trembling and fell before Jesus. In front of everyone, she explained why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed.
48 “Daughter, your faith has healed you,” Jesus said. “Go in peace.”
49 While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the synagogue leader’s house, saying to Jairus, “Your daughter has died. Don’t bother the teacher any longer.”
50 When Jesus heard this, he responded, “Don’t be afraid; just keep trusting, and she will be healed.”
51 When he came to the house, he didn’t allow anyone to enter with him except Peter, John, and James, and the child’s father and mother. 52 They were all crying and mourning for her, but Jesus said, “Don’t cry. She isn’t dead. She’s only sleeping.”
53 They laughed at him because they knew she was dead.
54 Taking her hand, Jesus called out, “Child, get up.” 55 Her life returned and she got up at once. He directed them to give her something to eat. 56 Her parents were beside themselves with joy, but he ordered them to tell no one what had happened.
9:1 Jesus called the Twelve together and he gave them power and authority over all demons and to heal sicknesses. 2 He sent them out to proclaim God’s kingdom and to heal the sick. 3 He told them, “Take nothing for the journey—no walking stick, no bag, no bread, no money, not even an extra shirt. 4 Whatever house you enter, remain there until you leave that place. 5 Wherever they don’t welcome you, as you leave that city, shake the dust off your feet as a witness against them.” 6 They departed and went through the villages proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.
7 Herod the ruler [or tetrarch] heard about everything that was happening. He was confused because some people were saying that John had been raised from the dead, 8 others that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the ancient prophets had come back to life. 9 Herod said, “I beheaded John, so now who am I hearing about?” Herod wanted to see him.
Synagogue leaders often opposed Jesus (cf. Luke 6:6-11, 13:10-14). But he didn’t hesitate to serve a synagogue leader who begged him to help his gravely ill daughter. He also served a woman who had suffered for 12 years. His power healed her when, hoping he wouldn’t notice, she stealthily touched his robe. And he sent his followers out to carry out the same core principle of his kingdom: serve and heal by sharing God’s love.
Click here to incorporate music and worship from the COR Worship Collective into your daily practice and devotion.
Compassionate Jesus, help my fearful, skeptical heart to be able to take in, and then to share with others, your calming, healing presence. Amen.
Sheree serves in Resurrection’s global ministry. She is humbled to partner with incredible leaders all over the world that are transforming lives and communities. When not working, she loves to run and spend time with her husband and (mostly) adult children: when those two things can be combined, it’s beautiful!
I don’t know about you, but I’m a planner. There’s a Plan A, Plan B, and often, a Plan C-–all of which help me in my job, and long-term in my personal life. But it also has me spending time planning for something that might or might not happen in the future.
COVID has taught me that I can plan all of the way out to Plan Z and it’s still possible that every single plan will fall through. On the other hand, it’s also taught me that the more variances I put in place, the more possibilities I have of it coming to fruition. That said, even after seeing Jesus heal a woman who bled for 12 years, and a child returned to life, if he turned to me and said, “Go spread the Word and take nothing with you,” I’m pretty sure I would’ve stood there frozen, eyes wide, mind racing (yes, I’m one of those internal processors), thinking through all of the implications of taking “nothing for the journey.” I believe in Jesus, I trust him-–100%. I have no doubt he will help me accomplish whatever he wants me to accomplish. But I also know it won’t always be comfortable or easy. He never says that. So, when he says “take nothing for the journey,” I would be like, “okaaaayyyy…” and then start madly thinking where I can spend the night, where to get snacks (snacks make every journey better), and where I might possibly borrow a pair of someone’s sandals or maybe a jacket. And if that doesn’t work, how else might I get something to equip us for the journey? The Scripture makes it sound so simple: “They departed and went through the villages proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.” Do you think the disciples worried about any of those things and it’s just not mentioned? Or were they so confident and trusting in Jesus that it didn’t matter if they were uncomfortable or hungry? They had a mission given to them by Jesus. Nothing else mattered.
And what about “healing people everywhere”? If I were one of those disciples, I’d like to think I would confidently walk up to a sick person, lay my hands on them, and say they are healed. But I wonder if I might make a few excuses first–you know, just in case it didn’t actually work. Or would I be like Peter when he realizes he has Spiderman superpowers? Start running around looking for anyone I can heal, screaming woohoo when it’s successful? You’ve got a small cut on your finger? No worries-–I’ve got you! Woooooohoooooo!
And where is “everywhere”? Do you think they asked questions? Like, where do you want us to go first Jesus? Who should we look for? How long should we stay? I often think the disciples had it easy listening to Jesus-–he would verbally tell them what to do and where to go, and they would go do it. In reality, I’m guessing he gave them the “go spread the Word,” and then they had to pray for discernment. Every time they came to a village, do you think “Should I Stay or Should I Go” was playing in their heads? It’s clear if they are not welcomed, they should shake the dust from their shoes and move on, but in the places they WERE welcomed, how long should they stay?
I’ve often thought that when I pray for discernment, it would be great if God answered with a big neon sign, a billboard, or one of those banners behind a plane: “Sheree, on March 24th at 10pm you should go talk to Jairus.” But I guess if I had that, I wouldn’t need to spend as much time in prayer. And I wouldn’t need to trust that whether I go in the right direction or make a wrong move, God’s still got me. Not getting a loud, straight answer gives me greater opportunities to spend time in prayer and trust God to handle the rest. So, the next time you are asking God for an answer, remember to keep putting one foot in front of the other, keep trusting, and keep knocking.