Since about month two or three of staying home, the thought of starting to blog again has come up and now two months later.. here we are! It was a nice surprise to log back on and see that all my old posts have been saved. I journal with pen and paper a lot, but there is something special about cataloging my thoughts on the big wide web.
There is so many voices in the world, and each one brings a beautifully unique perspective. I hope I don’t add to the noise, but that this is simply a place of grace and compassion while I share the noise going on in my head 🙂
This morning I was reading the story of the woman who has bled for 12 years, as told by Mark in the Bible. This has become one of my favorite stories over the years, particularly after reading Land of Silence by Tessa Afshar. Back then, women who were on their period were said to be unclean by law. Even the bed she slept on and the chairs she sat on were labeled, “unclean.” If someone else touched where she sat, they were also unclean and even after bathing would keep this label for the day. (Leviticus 15:25)
What struck me this morning is how the laws that were written at the time, informed how people thought. The law said people were unclean, so people thought they were unclean. Can you imagine if this was still the case for women? How lonely the woman who bled for 12 years must have been? Now, we don’t have any laws (that I know of) regarding how a woman handles her period and it is widely accepted in most societies. The laws that are written have shaped our thoughts and how we are raised whether we notice it or not.
The woman who approached Jesus and touched the hem of His robe to be healed did it without drawing any attention to herself. She believed what the law said about her- that she was unworthy and dirty. But Jesus, He drew attention to her. With many people surrounding Him, He asked who touched His robe. He knew the woman had great faith, and He knew she was worthy of healing and being acknowledged.
This is what I love about Jesus. He gets close to those who laws and societies say are unclean and unwanted. He always showed and shows love and healing to those that religious people and “good citizens” would pay no attention to. There is always more to learn and ways to grow, but when I think about how I want to treat others, I think of how Jesus is always bringing people in.
honestly here 