Life has a way of convincing us that nothing will ever change.

Mark 5: 21-43 (two separate stories intertwined)

Has the vibrant, joyful woman God created you to be been buried beneath years of disappointment?

Have the circumstances of life pressed down so heavily on you that you’re no longer truly living—you are simply surviving?

Maybe you’ve carried a burden for so long that it has become part of your identity. You’ve prayed. You’ve tried. You’ve waited. Yet instead of getting better, things seem to have grown worse.

The greatest danger isn’t the problem itself. The greatest danger is when the problem convinces you that nothing will ever change.

When disappointment becomes your expectation.

But today I want to remind you of something: One encounter with Jesus can change what years could not.

First, let’s look at the woman has has been suffering for 12 years. Scripture is specific and says “She suffered for 12 years with constant bleeding.” This isn’t just an inconvenience, this is cause for being excluded. She was considered unclean. Unable to go to the temple to worship. Unable to touch anyone or be touched. Weddings – she wasn’t allowed to be there. Family gatherings – not invited. She had been left alone in her suffering for 12 years.

But it’s not like she had just sat in her suffering and done nothing. She had tried everything. She had spent all her money on doctors and her condition had only continually gotten worse.

Twelve years of pain.

Can you imagine that? At some point most people would stop expecting anything different. Because that’s what time does. Time can make temporary struggles feel permanent. Time can convince us that our current reality is our final reality.

But the woman refused to let twelve years decide her future. She heard Jesus was near and she said: “If I can just touch Him.”

Not if He touches me.

If I can get to Him.

Faith doesn’t wait for perfect circumstances. Faith moves. Faith reaches. Faith presses through crowds. Faith says, “I know what my reality has been, but I also know who Jesus is.”

Can you say that? I KNOW WHAT MY REALITY HAS BEEN, BUT I ALSO KNOW WHO JESUS IS!

Don’t let a long battle convince you that God is finished.

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Notice something powerful in this story – it’s in the middle of another story. Jesus wasn’t looking for this suffering woman. In fact, he was on His way somewhere else. Yet her faith interrupted His journey.

Think about that. The crowd was touching Jesus. But only one person touched Him in faith. Many people were around Him. One person reached out to him in faith.

There is a difference between being near Jesus and reaching for Jesus.

Really, why are you listening today? Are you listening just because it’s part of your morning routine – or are you listening because you’re desperate for Jesus? There are some who are just in the crowd, but there is one who is reaching for Jesus. For the one reaching, there is power!

Is that you today? Are you listening because you’re reaching for Jesus?

Because she reached, power flowed. What people called impossible, Jesus called healed.

Will you still reach today? After all this time, after all this disappointment, will you still reach for Jesus in faith?

But remember, this isn’t just one story – this is two intertwined stories. When Mark retells the stories, he leaves these 2 stories together for us to see how Jesus works.

12 years, 2 daughters. Different stories, different needs, the same answer. Jesus steps into both situations.

Why leave these 2 stories together? To show Jesus doesn’t just heal suffering – He restores life itself.

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In other words: “It’s over. Too late. Don’t bother Jesus anymore.” Isn’t that exactly how the enemy speaks?

It’s over.

But Jesus immediately responded in verse 36: “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.”

Notice what Jesus did not say. He didn’t explain. He didn’t defend Himself. He simply called Jairus to keep believing.

Faith often has to survive the gap between the promise and the miracle. My friend, is that where you are – you’re in the gap between the promise and the miracle. You’re waiting for something to shift. You’re desperate for that change. Healing hasn’t come yet. Restoration is still unseen.

But remember this, what looks dead is not beyond Jesus. How do I know? Because it’s right here in the stories in our Bible! Because I’ve seen it in real life. I’ve seen it in marriages. I’ve seen it in cancer diagnoses. I’ve personally experienced that healing touch after a massive stroke and here I am walking and talking against all odds. I’m finally in the season of seeing my prodigal come home.

THIS IS NOT BEYOND JESUS. You can trust him with this.

So now, Jesus goes to Jairus’ house where his 12 year old daughter has died. When Jesus entered the room everyone else saw death. Jesus saw possibility. Everyone else saw an ending. Jesus saw an awakening.

Then He spoke those powerful words in verse 41: “‘Talitha koum.’ Which means, ‘Little girl, get up.’ And the girl, who was 12 years old, immediately stood up and walked around.”

I believe those words are still echoing today.

To the woman who has stopped dreaming: Get up.

To the woman who has accepted discouragement as normal: Get up.

To the woman who has been defined by disappointment: Get up.

To the woman who has allowed past failures to write her future: Get up.

To the woman who feels like she has lost herself somewhere along the way: Get up.

Because Jesus never called you to merely survive – He called you to live.

The woman with the issue of blood teaches us: Never stop reaching.

Jairus’ daughter teaches us: Never stay down.

One reached for Jesus. The other responded when Jesus called. And both received life.

Maybe you’ve been struggling for twelve years. Maybe you’ve been carrying something so long that you’ve forgotten what freedom feels like. Maybe you’ve stopped expecting change. Maybe you’ve fallen asleep beneath disappointment.

But today Jesus stands before you with the same power He carried in Mark chapter 5. The same power that stopped twelve years of suffering. The same power that raised a 12 year old girl from her bed. And His message is still the same:

“Daughter, be healed.” “Little girl, get up.”

This is not where your story ends. Reach for Him. Respond to Him. Believe Him. Because one encounter with Jesus can restore what years have tried to steal.

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