This is a story about a woman with an issue of blood.
When you read that what is your first thought? Mine would be the story of the woman in the Bible with issue of blood as talked about in Matthew 9, but that’s not what this particular story is about. Believe it or not, there is a story of another woman with an issue of blood. She isn’t mentioned in the Bible, but she is very well known. She had a blood issue. She needed blood. She needed a perfect sacrifice to save her from eternal torment.
This story begins way before time did, but for the sake of time (see what I did there… ha, okay, moving on). I’ll fast forward from the beginning of time to 2,000 years ago when a sacrifice was made for ALL the sins of the world. You see, this girl, she was filthy, dirty, unworthy, and very badly needed someone to come to her rescue. She found herself lost, searching for something more.
So she would try to find this missing piece in men. The problem was that men were as human and as selfish as she was. They failed her over and over. They broke her one after another, reminding her of her worthlessness. She was once again reminded that her feelings of being unworthy of love were true.
She would search for this missing piece in friends, but what she didn’t realize was that not everyone was as trustworthy as she thought. She would get close to people only to have them betray her time and time again. She would do her best to fit in. She would change things about herself. Some things she changed were just outer issues and not a big deal, but it became very dangerous when she was changing things on the inside to fit in with people who couldn’t care less. She would bend over backwards for her so-called “friends,” and they would take advantage of her sweet, gentle spirit. She would find herself once again hurt, alone, and feeling hopeless.
Now, before I go on to the next part of the story, I want to make it clear that not all churches are the same. I believe there is a generation rising up in the church that is preaching love and acceptance, but there was a day when judgment and condemnation were at the forefront of our minds.
Now back to the girl. She would search in a place like church, which you would think would be the right place, but it too brought pain. She would pour herself out only to be judged, ridiculed, and ashamed. She would seek for acceptance, but she would soon realize that she didn’t fit in with the groups. She would hear the preacher preach, but the last thing she felt was encouragement.
So, here she was. She has lost all hope so she surrenders to anything and everything that she thinks might manage the pain instead of curing it. She’s in a place she never thought she’d be. She has lived this life for so long, miserable, searching, never finding the answer. She thinks that it’s all over. She’s too far gone, and there is no way back. She had given so much of herself away to so many different people and things that now she is left to wonder who would ever want her.
But just then she hears a still, small voice. She looks around to see who is talking to her and sees no one. Once again she hears this voice, and she realizes she’s heard it before, but it’s been so long.
She thinks, “Could it be?”
“Is He really speaking to me after all this time?”
Her defenses spring into action.
“You left me when I need You the most!”
“How could You just leave me?”
She used to know Him. Very well, in fact. But even though she thinks He has been absent in her life, He has been there the whole time. She was just too busy searching in all the wrong places. She failed to realize He was always there.
Her walls begin to break down. She begins to discover who HE really is. She begins to find so many of things she was searching for.
Love.
Joy.
Hope.
Self-worth.
Life.
Salvation.
And with all these things came a freedom she had never known. She had become fulfilled because, instead of putting her worth, hope, and love into humans, into shallow things that were temporary, she put them in a Man Who loved her so much that He sacrificed His own life for her. He died for her! He left the comfort of His perfect home to come to a place where He was ridiculed and hated. He came so that He might solve the issue of blood, not just for her but for everyone who would believe in Him. All He asked was that we would just believe that He was and is the only One Who can solve the issue.
So who is this woman I am speaking of?
She is YOU.
She is ME.
She represents every woman who has ever felt she wasn’t good enough or that she was beyond love. I’m here to tell you, you aren’t too far gone! You have WORTH. You are not beyond love.
Lift your head, sister. As the Bible says in Psalm 30:5, “Sorrow may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning.”
Wherever you find yourself right now, know that this sorrow, this weeping, this pain will not last forever. Joy is coming. Hope is coming. Salvation is coming, and His name is Jesus. Not only is He the Savior of the world, but He has come to rescue you wherever you are!
There was an issue. A blood supply was needed. A perfect sacrifice was needed. A perfect sacrifice was made. The issue has been fixed. The issue has been resolved.
Edited by Rebekah Pendergrast
Photography by Eryka Randolph
I sincerely enjoyed your writing. Thank you for this.
Whitney! You have done it again! You have found yet another way to bless others by shining light that leads to our Lord! I am loving this. Love you big.
I loved this!! Such a beautiful way to present the gospel story.
This is so well-written and so encouraging 🙂