Healing

My dear friends in Christ,

Why does Jesus heal a leper immediately after deciding to focus on the proclamation of the Gospel? Didn't He just decide that He is not primarily a healer? Didn't He just leave dozens or perhaps hundreds of sick people so He could preach? The key to understanding this passage is realizing that this story is about much more than a physical healing. In this story and the next, Mark shows us how Jesus deals with much more than the physical need of the sick person. In the process, he shows how salvation comes to the sick person, and provides us with a beautiful picture of God's grace extended to each of us. Many of us are in need of some type of healing whether it be physical, spiritual, or emotional. We do mess things up! We do get things wrong! What do we do when we discover that we are not perfect? We ask God to cleanse us and make us whole again. Remember that God in His graciousness is willing to forgive, heal, and restore your relationships with Him and others. He is ready to clean up all the messes you have made. Most importantly, He wants to call you His own and to accept you completely. Will you offer yourself to God like the leper?

Speaking of cleaning, the Tuesday morning cleaning crew was at it this week and even I pitched in to help clean out the storage area to give us more room. We need help! If you can give of your time on Tuesday from 9:00am to 10:00am, we would be most grateful. The age of the volunteer goes up and those who replace them go down.

May God bless you all!

Father John