Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 78, Deuteronomy 8:1-10; Matthew 9:18-26; Galatians 4:8-14
There were a lot of words that people could have used to describe me when I was growing up: conscientious, dependable, hard-working, and reliable were some of the most common words used. One description that no one would have used to describe me was risk-taker. Why was that? Well, as I was struggling to come to terms with my identity as a gay man, I compensated for the lack of control I felt over my own feelings by trying to control every other aspect of my life. Everything I thought and did was to maintain an acceptable image of myself – in others’ eyes and in my own. That’s why I could never take a risk. I always had to play it safe and do what was expected of me. What I didn’t realize at the time, however, was that I was like the hemorrhaging woman in today’s story from Matthew. I was miserable. And like her - no matter what resources I sought out or how much will I tried to reach down and summon, the daily challenges I faced didn’t go away. Eventually both the hemorrhaging woman and I reached a point in our life where we had no place else to turn. When we arrived at that point, we did the only thing possible: we reached out. And before we knew it, our faith was rewarded – we began to regain a sense of health and wholeness. Where are you at in your own faith journey? Are you still trying to control and manage things? Or are you ready to follow the example of the hemorrhaging woman and reach out in faith? The good news is that no matter how long it takes you to reach out in faith (12 years in the hemorrhaging woman’s case – 25 years in my case), God will be there to bring health and wholeness to your life. The only question, then, is this: are you ready?! Til next time…
There were a lot of words that people could have used to describe me when I was growing up: conscientious, dependable, hard-working, and reliable were some of the most common words used. One description that no one would have used to describe me was risk-taker. Why was that? Well, as I was struggling to come to terms with my identity as a gay man, I compensated for the lack of control I felt over my own feelings by trying to control every other aspect of my life. Everything I thought and did was to maintain an acceptable image of myself – in others’ eyes and in my own. That’s why I could never take a risk. I always had to play it safe and do what was expected of me. What I didn’t realize at the time, however, was that I was like the hemorrhaging woman in today’s story from Matthew. I was miserable. And like her - no matter what resources I sought out or how much will I tried to reach down and summon, the daily challenges I faced didn’t go away. Eventually both the hemorrhaging woman and I reached a point in our life where we had no place else to turn. When we arrived at that point, we did the only thing possible: we reached out. And before we knew it, our faith was rewarded – we began to regain a sense of health and wholeness. Where are you at in your own faith journey? Are you still trying to control and manage things? Or are you ready to follow the example of the hemorrhaging woman and reach out in faith? The good news is that no matter how long it takes you to reach out in faith (12 years in the hemorrhaging woman’s case – 25 years in my case), God will be there to bring health and wholeness to your life. The only question, then, is this: are you ready?! Til next time…
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