~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)
Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women cultivate a life of depth, discipline, and delight. Read the latest post on finding beauty in the everyday here.
The streets were hot and crowded as the people jostled for space. In the midst of the dust and sweat, a woman with a trembling hand reached out and touched the rough-hewn cloak of the man walking and talking in front of her.
She knew that this was a life-or-death situation. She knew she just had to reach him. If she could only touch him, the horror of the last decade would at last be finished. She shuddered. Years of being alone. Years of throwing her money at doctors for a cure. Years of being barred from the temple.
With a look to the side and the left, she leaped at her chance and grabbed the hem of his cloak. Just then, the man turned and said, “Who touched me?”
Fear settled in the pit of her stomach. Everyone looked around with a questioning glance. What was he talking about? But the woman knew – it was her. She spoke up, stammering, expecting a rebuke, “It was I, my Lord.”
Instead of speaking harshly to her, he gently turned to her and said, “Go. Your faith has made you well.”
Today, we read of this woman’s story and her miraculous faith in Jesus. We also read about Balaam’s curses (or lack thereof). Each of these stories shows the truth of Psalm 21:6-8:
“Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed;
he will answer him from his holy heaven
with the saving might of his right hand.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
They collapse and fall,
but we rise and stand upright.”
Balak had chosen to trust in the curses of Balaam. He wanted Balaam to bring about the destruction of the Israelites, but he was thwarted because the people who trust in the name of God will rise and stand upright. Balaam was not even able to curse the Israelites because God as with them. The curses instead fell on Balak.
The woman chose to trust in God through Jesus, and she was able to rise and stand upright, healed and made clean through Christ. Doctors, money, and status could not save her, but God did.
We are constantly blown and tossed by the storms of life. When we go through suffering, when we go through pain, we have to turn and fix our eyes on the Lord. Others may collapse and fall, but if we trust in him, we will rise and stand upright.
Reflection Questions
- What have you found yourself trusting in lately?
- What are the chariots and horses of today? Why is it so much easier to trust in ‘chariots and horses’?
- Is there a situation in your life where you need to trust God more?
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for the care that you give each one of your servants. Thank you for not neglecting us in our sorrow and need, but instead, providing for us in every way. Help us to trust in you more.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Seek Grow Love 