This week we get a glimpse into the story of a woman that came to Jesus after many years of suffering.  She had tried every other means of healing with no results.  Stories of Jesus and his miraculous healing had spread across the land and once again, this woman had hope.  With great faith, she brought herself to His feet.  Read through this passage slowly and allow the images to form in your mind.  What might God be inviting you to notice today? 

Mark 5:24-34
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. 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?"
"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."

Some brief history:
• This woman was considered to be unclean according to the law stated in Lev 15:25-28
• If this woman were to touch anyone or anyone’s clothes, they would also be considered to be unclean for the rest of the day. She was truly "untouchable."  Lev 15:26-27
• Due to her condition and her threat to others, she should not have been in a place where there were a lot of people.

For your reflection:
• As you listened to the story, what word or phrase stood out to you?
• Place yourself in the story. Are you standing in the crowd, one of the disciples or are you the woman in need of healing? What do you see, hear and notice as you take on that role? Is there a prayer that might come out of your reflections?
• Have you ever felt untouchable?  Allow the exchange between Jesus and this woman to minister to your heart. Take some time to journal your thoughts.
• Jesus didn’t allow the woman to go away unnoticed. Reflect on why He chose to call her out.
• Is there something in your life that has kept you searching? Can you bring your needs to Jesus?