Touching the Hem

"But Jesus said, 'Someone has touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.' Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, 'Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.'" Luke 8: 46 - 48

Here is the picture - a huge crowd had developed as Jesus and the disciples were making their way to the home of a dignitary, a ruler of the synagogue. As Jesus was trying to make His way through the crowd, a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years secretly slipped up behind Jesus and placed her slender little hand on the hem of His cloak. This stopped Jesus in His tracks as He stated that someone had touched Him and wanted to know the source of the person whom had accessed His healing power.

Jesus never wants to be anonymous to His children and wants to acknowledge the courage, bravery and faith of each act towards Him. In her mind, it was never a question of would she be healed but a question of could she find Him and access His power? There lies the rub... do we work our way through our crowded lives to find Him? It is easy to believe He can heal when we are Christians but do we do the work to align ourselves with His hem? Are we close enough to reach our hand out and touch the edge of Him? Do we come before Him in awe and trembling much like this woman realizing the greatness of His power and the possibilities of new life when we touch the Hem? Do we acknowledge our healing power comes from Him as our testimony? This woman was brave enough to come forward and reveal that she was the one who had accessed His power therein testifying to the amazing healing power of Him. Talk about an impact moment! Jesus had many of these - He had just met this woman and yet He refers to her immediately as daughter. She had taken the risk of touching Him and it had paid off through her faith.

When our circumstances have us lying there, bleeding, fearful, and wanting to find healing are we close enough to reach out for the "Him" or are we standing off in the crowd wondering why we are missing out? Do we inch, press and push our way to the edge of the power source knowing we will be able to access His power? Remember, healing is found at the intersection of where our greatest weakness meets His greatest strength. Reach out and touch His hem!