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January 25, 2008
Touching Jesus
Dear Friends,
This morning God was speaking to me through my pastor. Do you remember that lady in Israel who was bleeding for 12 years before she came to Jesus? The message was about her. She was not suppose to touch any one, she was not allowed in the temple. She was suppose to be outside of the city. If she was to follow the culture and crowd of that time she was not allowed to touch any one, let alone Jesus.
But when She was desperate she came to Jesus. Against the crowd she made her way through and gripped Jesus' cloak. she was instantly healed. Most of the time though we do understand how much we need Jesus we do not do the most unpopular thing until God bring us to our desperate hour. As my Pastor suggested, God has seen her first and that helped her to come. All the desperation and the bleeding helped her to decide to come to her solution at last, thank you Jesus!
to me the beginning of this year was like that. In the past 4 years one of my brokenness was the fact that I did not want to upset any one. At my own cost, because of the community I serve and in the name of not to be in trouble.
I avoided confrontation, I avoided fight even when it is worth fighting. I waited till the last minute. Just like this woman, when I am desperate I came to Jesus and did all the things I did not want to do. Interestingly, that is when I saw Jesus working in me.
One of my friends was telling me last year, in the midst of the pain that I was going trough, God is growing me to become a leader who tells people the truth in the context of justice and mercy. Though it has been a bumpy ride, because of my disobedience to God, it is one of the best changes God made in me. My desperation brought me to Jesus. Because of the fear of rejection and not wanting to be uncomfortable; I waited until the last minute to make the choices and changes that I needed to bring to myself and to the people I serve. The more I did not want to confront people, including those who hurt me, to avoid confrontation the more I became miserable.
God brought me to the hour of my desperation and I was able to walk with him and there is healing and restoration. Believe me it seems easier to go with the crowd, and may be continue bleeding until God brings you to the healing. But it takes, to most of us, a lot of desperation to crack thorough the crowd and get the grip of Jesus. The Church of Jesus Christ is not a pleaser institution it is a counterculture movement. It is not an institution that tries to catch-up. It is a movement that is a forerunner and changes times.
Because God is moving me in the direction I never planned there will be people who would be upset and mad. Because of the cross cultural movement I am in, and most people choose not to cross, when things change I know I would be levelled and may be rejected. But because this is the healing movement of God I had to make difficult choice and changes because of the Justice and mercy of God to me and people I chose to serve.
My last four years again and again, taught me that it is possible to be a crowd that seemingly follow Jesus but not really come into grips with him. It take one desperate soul to see Jesus with all of his might and go against the odds. In this ministry, where I am constantly reminded that I am alien and Immigrant; I had to pay a price I never expected because of people who chose not to apply humility and servanthood in a cross cultural context. But the God who crossed from heaven to earth helped me to grow and touch many lives regardless of my delayed obedience. The God who chooses one person in the midst of the crowed who probably missed him is walking with me everyday regardless of the crowd's view of me. Many people have the mentality of making everything as normal and routine as much as they can so that their comfort zone would not be shaken.
The new year started with that desperate call to Jesus and he is proclaiming a year of Jubilee to me and the people I serve. I am free and I am loved and called by God with who I am. I am one of a kind as each one of you are.
I am not naive to forget that there are people who may consciously committed to be different from me. But I am learning to listen to God, only God. If that is a mistake it is worth making. I am trusted the God who gives life to the dry bones and stops a 12 year bleeding.
THANK YOU JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!
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| By kishawork2 | 01:15 PM
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Comments
I know what you mean about not wanting to confront, but sometimes the most loving thing we can do is confront-or so I've learned. I still don't like doing it, but I do think of it more like restoring relationship than fighting like I used to (Gal 6:1). In my family there were a lot of "I've got to be right" kind of confrontations which skewed my understanding of what true confronting is. I remember I was really struggling with confronting someone dear to me about something a few years ago, and I was encouraged to read Matt 18:15-17. I read it right before I went. Anyway, when I got there I was filled with love for them, instead of the all too common "I'm right and I'm going to prove you're wrong at all cost" attitude, I was filled with love. That experience has lead me to be less fearful of confronting.
Thanks for posting Worku. I miss you. Hey, Jacob and I going to mom and dad's this Sunday for sure. I can't stay super late, cause I have to get up early, but I really hope I get to see you and Becca.
Blessings! I'm so thankful for your voice Worku.
Posted by: Heidi Vincent at January 25, 2008 02:24 PM
