Description
The characters we will meet as we open the bible together today come from the many different extremes of human experience, of being human. From the Hebrew Bible we will hear of Mighty Warriors, and people who cry out in desperation to God. From the Gospels we will hear of a woman who has bled for many years and a little girl given up for dead, her father a holy leader. From the Letters we will hear of needy believers and those who give generously. These people and their stories show the faithfulness and goodness of God. We join with them as we gather today – from whatever place of strength or sickness, courage or complexity, grieving or gratitude, we come from.
In terms of the specific resources, the Come! (Call to Worship) and Voices of Grief (Creative Bible Engagement) suggestions combine all four readings and can be used independently or as a unit. Raising Questions (Creative Bible Engagement), Touch (Creative Bible Engagement) and Colours of Prayer (Creative Prayer Reflection) focus solely on the Mark 5: 21-43 reading.
In Mark 5:21-43 there are actually two stories twisted together. A story about a little girl, and a story about a mature woman. The little girl is so sick everyone is sure she’s dead; the woman has been bleeding and bleeding and bleeding – so sick no doctor can cure her. Two stories twisted together. So, let’s twist some chenille stems together as we get ready to listen.
In the passage, Jesus arrives among a large crowd, and he’s caught up in a crowd that is all squashed together. Some of us are comfortable in crowds, others aren’t. There are crowds who might get in the way of Jesus healing both the girl and the woman, but Jesus doesn’t get put off. Jesus notices someone who reaches out to touch him in the crowd. We notice how different people respond to meeting Jesus. Crowding in, quietly reaching, begging for help, laughing and scoffing at him, inviting him in, responding to his authority…just as amongst us there may be different responses to Jesus today.
Written and compiled by Beth Waldron Anstice
