Healing the Deeper Part

“Daughter, be encouraged! Your faith has made you well.” And the woman was healed at that moment. Matthew 9:22 NLT

How many times have I read this story and poured over it, picking apart every single word and concept to see the secret hidden message helping me to understand how I could “reach for the hem of His garment”, “press my way through the crowds”, “if I could just get to Jesus, I could be healed”. My focus in reading this story has always been about the woman’s persistence and the ‘power that went out from Him’. Tonight, at 11pm, after seeing this verse before my eyes all day long, I finally noticed these words, “Daughter, be encouraged!” Wow. I’m just a little blown away. This woman had received her healing, and she may or may not have already known the healing had taken place. But Jesus, ministers to her weary heart. And isn’t that like our tender, loving God? Doesn't He always see past the surface, beyond our requests? Doesn’t He always minister to the whole person?

I can’t imagine what it would be to walk in her shoes - they didn’t even have Midol then! How many days, weeks, months, and years had she been physically depleted? And how being outcast must have weighed on her. The issue of blood was indeed devastating, but the ridicule and emotional trauma would have been piled high from years of rejection. So the first thing Jesus speaks into her life is, “Daughter, be encouraged!” He’s a good, good Father. Rest in His love and compassion for you, my friend.