21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. 22 Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23 and begged him repeatedly, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.” 24 So he went with him…. 35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?” 36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.” 37 He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 38 When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39 When he had entered, he said to them, “Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.” 40 And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha cum,” which means, “Little girl, get up!” 42 And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age). At this they were overcome with amazement. 43 He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat. Mark 5:21-24,35-43
We’re doing a little bit of injustice to Mark this morning. Today’s reading appears to be a continuous story but Mark included, right in the middle, another healing of an older woman. We’ll take up that story tomorrow and we’ll pay attention to the intriguing little details in the interplay between the two stories.
But today we will simply listen to a powerful story.
Anyone who has had the privilege of parenting a child knows that utterly helpless feeling that descends when their child gets sick or hurt. Like every other parent, I’ve been there.
I thought, when the kids were just little babies, that it would never get worse than that. Holding feverish little bodies. Using the rubber blue thing to clear out noses. One more trip to the emergency room or the doctor’s office. I often thought about parents who didn’t have medicine, didn’t have doctors, didn’t have health insurance. It isn’t a reach to think back in history and how much worse it would have been then when it wasn’t unusual at all to lose a child to what we would consider a relatively harmless illness.
Then they got older. They reached the age of broken bones and motorcycle crashes and car accidents. Then came the pain of broken relationships and broken hearts and inner struggles and I came to realize that parents never quit worrying about their children.
This morning, one of the people I prayed for is a little girl who was just diagnosed with leukemia. She lives here with her mother and siblings while her dad serves our country in the Army in Germany. I’m praying for the little girl and her family but also for her father to be able to cut through any red tape that would prevent him from being at his little girl’s side.
Jairus is named as a leader of the local synagogue. We don’t need to know anything else about him beyond seeing him fall at the feet of Jesus, begging him for help. His 12 year old daughter is grievously ill. Her sickness has become a public event, the mourners are already there ready to begin their wailing.
“Talitha cum!” Two words from Jesus and she is better. How would you react? How DO you react?
Let us pray: Dear Lord, we pray today along with all of those who are suffering with illnesses afflicting their children. We pray for courage, patience, steadfast love and renewed hope in parents. We pray for children who are too young to understand why they hurt. We pray for medical workers who tend to them. Be our Healer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Daily Devotions 
February 22, 2012 at 7:34 pm |
Hi Pastor Kerry,
My name is Kent Bratsch and my family attends Spirit of Joy in The Woodlands. We’ve been members since 1999. Our youngest son, Noah, was diagnosed with leukemia in 2009 and he is still going through treatment. I wanted to offer that we would be willing to talk to the family you mention above if they have any questions. We found it helpful to speak with someone who has personally been through it. I sent you the link to the site where we update Noah’s progress. Anyway, they can email me their contact information, but only if they are willing.
Peace,
Kent