The Woman Who Bled

While I have heard the story of the woman who bled in the bible many times, it was only recently that I really read it. And it moved me to tears. The testament of this woman's faith in Jesus' ability of healing is beautiful. While Jesus was performing miracles and teaching His ministry, a woman in the crowd appears. She is described as having long suffered from chronic bleeding for the last twelve years. She is first described in the book of Matthew, chapter 9, and later in a little more detail in the book of Mark, chapter 5.

It says in Mark that she went to every doctor she could, but with no relief. Mark 5:24-25, "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."

Imagine the level of hopelessness this woman had. When you can't get answers and you're out of options, money and at your wits end. She tried all she could.

Then, she heard of Jesus. Mark 5:27, "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."

And that's what she did. Her faith in His ability to take away her suffering and to hear heal pain was so strong that all it took was a touch to his cloak. In other translations, it says his hem. I imagine she fell to her knees when I read that version.

Mark 5:29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. This right here floors me. She believed He was the utmost healer, and she was freed.

Mark 5:33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. In such a limited background of this woman, I wish I had more information. Specifically, who told her about Jesus healing the sick? How far did she travel? And though she bowed in fear, worrying, how full was her heart with love for Him? Jesus showed her an outpouring of love in return.

Mark 5:34, He said, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering." And I imagine that's what she did. To think of her grand testimony- that after years of suffering, a simple touch of the fabric Christ wore was all it took for her to be well. Something man could not do. It isn't long after this amazing story in Mark that Jesus says something else that maybe you, as I do, need to hear.

Mark 5:36: "Don't be afraid; just believe." So often we try to make sense of our problems and come up with our own solutions, then the backup to those solutions, and only then do we call on Christ. He reminds us again and again to not fear anything. His plan is perfect. And while there will be troubles in life, times of hardship and battles, He also promises to never leave us. Deuteronomy 31:6, "He will never leave you or forsake you."

As I battle my own health woes, I find myself thinking, "if only I could touch His cloak." While I can't touch it physically, I can with my heart, with my mind and with my prayer. Jesus is here with me, as He is with YOU, he's just waiting on us to call Him.

The woman who bled. Her faith is a beautiful example of what we should all be living.

Leave a comment or message me on Instagram @cassandrajoelle if you'd like me to pray for you.

All verses quoted in NIV.