Liberated

I was reading in the Bible in the book of Mark chapters 1-3 where Jesus spent time healing people. He healed a man with a crippled hand, He healed a man who had been paralyzed, He healed a man with an evil spirit, He healed Simon's mother-in-law who was sick with a fever and He healed a man with leporsy. 

I have read those accounts many times in the past, but tonight I was struck by the reality that those people were truly liberated in that moment of healing. Imagine spending your entire life unable to walk or not having the use of your hand. Imagine being near death with a fever or being on the outskirts of your social circle with no friends because of your disease. Imagine being possessed by a demon and not hving control of your own life. Imagine the hopelessness that those people were living with. Imagine the number of times they likely wanted to take their own lives believing they were worthless and never going to be able to accomplish anything worthwhile. 

Think for a moment about the first time they heard about this man named Jesus. Imagine the faint spark that ignited in thier hearts as they wondered about the truthfulness of His claims and the stories of others. Could He really heal? Could He really liberate the captive? Was there hope for them? 

I imagine that they did their best to suppress any hope that was welling up inside of them for fear that they would be let down once again, only to come to the realization that they were stuck yet again. 

Imagine the beating of their hearts, feeling as though their heart was going to pound right out of their chest as they approached Him. Imagine their weak knees as they made their final approach hoping against hope that even a portion of what they'd heard was actually true. 

Imagine the moment that your hand, which had been crippled from birth suddenly became straight. Imagine the moment that your fever finally breaks and you start to feel like yourself again.
Imagine the moment that you finally regain control of your faculties.
Imagine that moment you are reunited with your loved ones after being shunned for years. 
Imagine the moment your legs instantaneously regain their strength and you stand up for the first time on your own. 

Now imagine your greatest fear. Imagine your greatest obstacle. Imagine your great sickness. Imagine your biggest anxiety. Imagine that thing that you've convinced yourself you're stuck with. 

You've heard the stories. You've done your best to suppress your hope that what you've heard is true. You've felt the beating of your heart about to come out of your chest. Strengthen your knees and run to Him. He will heal you. He will liberate you. Go to Him. 

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