Out of the Wildernessنموونە

WHEN LOVE LEFT, JESUS STAYED

One day, Jesus was approached by a woman who had suffered from a bleeding disorder for twelve years. She would have been considered unclean due to her condition, leaving her stigmatized and isolated. She was desperate for a cure. Then she heard of Jesus’s healing ability, and she thought that if only she could touch the hem of his cloak, she would be healed.

“Jesus turned and saw her. ‘Take heart, daughter,’ he said, ‘your faith has healed you’” (Matthew 9:22).

Where others would have cast her out, Jesus met her with mercy and grace. And while she is unnamed in the Gospels, Jesus named her “daughter” and claimed her as one of his children.

Like this woman, I (Arielle) also reached a point where I was des­perate for a miracle.

My three-and-a-half-year relationship ended abruptly in 2022, and it felt like a nightmare I was waiting to wake up from. Anxious, brokenhearted, and sleep deprived, I was merely trying to survive.

Finally, one day, as I was driving, I noticed a church near my house and pulled in. Inside the empty sanctuary, I fell to my knees and cried out, “God, can you help me?”

In that moment, I felt seen. I sensed a comfort and a love I had never experienced before. My pain caused me to cling to Jesus’s hem, and I found what I longed for.

Is your heart so broken that you feel like you will do just about anything to heal it?

What if, in the mastery of God, your broken heart isn’t for your disappointment but for your development?

Here’s what I know: You have a heavenly Father, one who loves you more than anyone else ever could. One who wants the very best for you and will never withhold something that is truly yours.

As you reach out to him, you can hear his voice gently saying, “Your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”

Dear Jesus, you see my brokenness and pain. You hear the cries of my heart. Help me to trust in you, knowing that you are working everything for my good. Amen.