So I am going to show a little love to myself today by NOT trying to play catch up on the days that I have missed and simply let myself start where I am. I'm really not OCD about too many things, but this is hard for me -- I don't like skipping things. But I really need to keep moving forward, so I'm going to give it a try. :)
Today McKnight talks about loving our neighbor, specifically those who are in need. The problem is, we often don't realize or recognize those who are in need because we are not listening to them or looking for them in the way that Jesus did. He made reference to the story of Jairus' daughter and brought out something that I had not seen before. He says, "Jesus hears with the ears of mercy and readiness to help. When someone told the synagogue ruler Jairus that his daughter was dead, Jesus overheard the statement and said, “Do not fear. Only believe, and she will be saved” (Luke 8:50). There is a lot of chaos in this moment and still, Jesus hears the news that is being delivered to Jairus and is able to respond to it with healing words of comfort and hope. I know that when life is hectic for me and there seems to be many needs all around me, it is very difficult for me to continually respond in a compassionate way to the needs around me... and here, Jesus does it even before he is asked to help... that challenges me!
But the part of this that I liked the most talked about "Linking With the Hands of Jesus." When asking the question "Where do I begin?" in meeting the needs of others, McKnight says this:
Link with the hands of Jesus. Jesus has the hands of healing, renewal, life, and restoration. When Jesus saw the unclean leper, he touched him with the hand of healing (Matthew 8:3). When his disciples were dizzied by an encounter with God and shaken with fear, Jesus touched them with the hand of renewal (17:7). When he saw the young man lying dead on a funeral bier and saw the man’s mother in grief, Jesus touched the bier with the hand of life (Luke 7:14). When one of the disciples reacted to Jesus’ arrest by chopping off the ear of a man, Jesus touched the man with hand of restoration (22:51). Jesus touched those in need with hands of grace. How might we touch others with the hands of Jesus?
Healing, renewal, life, restoration - Jesus has generously touched my life in all of these ways - now, how will I touch the lives of others?
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