November 20

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And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched my clothes?’ But His disciples said to Him, ‘You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, “Who touched me?” Mark 5:30-31

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🔊 The woman with the flow of blood approached Jesus secretly, hoping just to touch the hem of His garment and then escape without Him noticing! The amazing fact is that Jesus let her do it. When He noticed that power had gone from Him, He turned round and asked who had touched Him. This beautiful detail indicates the non-confrontational way Jesus works with hurting people. It is the same way that God called to Adam in the Garden of Eden. God knew where Adam was, but He did not confront him; He simply called him. Jesus knew who had touched Him, but He had no desire to confront her. Jesus doubtless saw countless desolate, broken people watching Him from afar, fearing to approach Him. His heart would have ached for them. But He would not barge in and confront them; He dealt with them tenderly. There is no-one who can handle us as wisely and tenderly as Jesus. He made us, and He knows and understands us through and through. He knows our need for love; He alone can satisfy that need. The best counsellor is clumsy compared with Him. And He allows us to approach Him secretly and still blesses and heals us. Once, a certain man held back from coming to Christ because he feared telling anyone he had done so. The evangelist told him that he did not need to tell anyone that he had become a Christian. The man was so relieved that he went home to his bedroom, where he knelt and gave his life to Christ. He was so changed and filled with joy that he immediately ran to tell his family what had happened to him!