July 2: Healing Strength and Grace

In Matthew 8, 28-34, Jesus drives two demons into a herd of swine, thus setting two men free of “possession.” By His healing power, Jesus restored the men back to sanity and a normal life. It is striking that, after doing this, the people of the region begged Jesus to leave their neighborhood. Wouldn’t we expect them to want Jesus, this Rabbi who could bring freedom to the enslaved, to stay among them for some time? Surely there were others in this locality who needed the presence of God’s healing power at work in Jesus.

Isn’t it also true, however, that we are tempted occasionally ask Jesus to leave us in peace? Don’t we sometimes want to keep Him at a distance? We sense His nearness as very demanding, He expects a lot from us. He might call us to go out toward those who live on the edge of society, as He Himself went out toward the two demoniacs who lived among the tombs. And there are many other ways that discipleship asks a lot of us.

On the other hand, if we warmly welcome the Lord into our lives, rather than keeping Him at a distance, His promise is that He will always give us the strength and grace to respond to what is needed – and we, too, will find a greater fullness of life.