Mark 5:36 – But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”
Easier said than done, of course. That’s always my first reaction when I read one of the many biblical passages urging someone—urging me—to be not afraid.
Given that his daughter is near death, Jairus has every right to be afraid. And so does the woman who dares to touch Jesus’ cloak, confident that doing so will deliver her from an illness no physician has been able to cure. In both cases, the stories have happy endings; the child lives and the anonymous woman is healed.
So what do fear and belief have to do with these two accounts of restoration? As much as I love the happy endings here, the takeaway is not that two people are healed but that Jesus is able to deliver them from debilitating fear. And that’s what he promises us.
MOVING FORWARD: Has Jesus delivered you from a debilitating fear? How has this healing changed you?
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