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Mark 5:25, 27-29, 34
Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years … She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease … [Jesus] said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

To ponder
Timidly we get off the train … We bard ur first Yankee street care to go to a cousin’s home … We have been told that we can sit where we please, but we are still scared. We cannot shake off three hundred years of fear in three hours. - Richard Wright, 12 Million Black Voices

Free at last
People live among us with untold stories of severe hardships they have endured. However brief or extended the span of time, these powerful stories expose forces still at work to cause suffering, discouragement, and despair.

A timid walk up the aisle of a church, a fearful rid on a formerly segregated streetcar, an uncertain response to Jesus’ probing question, “Who touched me?” - all reveal the lingering fear of rejection. Going against expectations established by indifference and injustice is difficult. Jesus, however, lifts up those the world wants to keep down. We have new stories to tell, surprising stories about the transforming power of Jesus’ love to overcome the ways of the world. These powerful stories of faith truly make us whole.

Prayer
Holy One, we are humbled by your passion to confront the forces that demean and diminish us. Thank you for stories of faith that show the power of your redeeming love. Bless us with hope that is greater than fear and despair. Amen.

(from: “A Story to Tell: Devotions for Lent” Bekki Lohrmann, Harvard Stephens Jr., Lydia Posselt, David L. Miller; Augsburg Fortress, 2020)