Risk the Reach
In Mark 5, two people with nothing in common except desperation both make the decision to risk everything to get to Jesus. Jairus was a synagogue leader with reputation, standing, and social connections to protect. At a time when most religious leaders were turning against Jesus, he ran to Him in public, fell at His feet, and begged Him to heal his dying daughter. The woman in the same crowd had been bleeding for 12 years. She had spent everything she had, lost everything she once had, and lived in isolation because her condition made her ceremonially unclean. She pushed into the pressing crowd, believing that touching the hem of His robe would be enough. Both of them risked something real to reach Jesus, and both of them found that He was worth it.
When the woman touched His robe, Jesus stopped and asked who had touched Him. He was not confused. He was extending an invitation. He wanted her story to come out, not just her physical healing. When she came forward trembling and told Him everything, He called her something He never called anyone else in Scripture. He called her daughter. He welcomed her into His family and told her that her faith had healed her. The power was never in the reach itself. The power was in Jesus. Her reach simply connected her to Him. Meanwhile, news came that Jairus' daughter had already died. Jesus told Jairus not to be afraid and to keep believing. He went to the house, took the girl by the hand, and she stood up immediately. Death was no obstacle for Him.
These two stories are placed side by side intentionally. A girl of 12 years given her life back. A woman healed after 12 years of suffering. One came publicly, one came secretly. One was honored, one was invisible. But both fell at the feet of Jesus, and to both of them His message was the same: do not be afraid, just believe. The question worth sitting with is what is keeping you in the crowd instead of truly reaching for Him. Is it pride, shame, fear of being seen, or the feeling that it is too late? Whatever it is, Jesus is still turning around and asking who is reaching for Him, not just bumping up against Him, but truly reaching in faith.