I'm Ok With Slow
A Man Healed at the Pool
of Bethesda
After this there was
a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now
there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is
called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. 3 In
these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting
for the moving of the water. 4 For an angel went down at a
certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in
first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he
had. 5 Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity
thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew
that he already had been in that condition a long time, He
said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”
7 The sick man answered
Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up;
but while I am coming, another steps down before me.”
8 Jesus said to
him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” 9 And immediately
the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. (from John chapter 5)
This
story could be familiar to you as a nice, feel good Sunday school lesson.
But
I ask you to look at it again, and try to see the miracle of miracles here.
What
was going on?
- A poolside miracle!
What
does that mean?
- People from miles around waited for days, even months,
to be finally free from any terrible disease imagine-able. The cure was heaven
sent. No doctors needed. No questions asked.
How
big was this beach property?
- Five verandas surrounding the waters!
Was
this a busy place?
- Yes! A much crazier scene than a chilly 6:00 am"Black Friday mosh-pit" at Menards!
How
many people benefited from the random angelic healing?
- This was a first come, first serve, one person wins
all, too-bad-you-missed-it-because-you-were-too-slow, too
crippled-and-tripped-losing-your-cane-I-don't-care-if-you-got-hurt, you are in
my way-I-I-I-Me-Me-Me... WIN.
How
many years did it say this crippled man was waiting for a miracle?
- Thirty-eight excruciatingly long years!
What
just happened?
-Funny thing happened. The Messiah, the Healer, the Gentle Shepherd
who knows His sheep, happened by that day.
He
stops at this pool, somehow works His way through the crowd of sick and
disabled and finds this one man.
This
man, who has been waiting and hoping and praying and pleading and crawling... and
failing, year after year after year, to be delivered from his heavy burden
of pain and disease - this man is chosen above all.
Why
this man? I don't know, maybe because he waited so long. Maybe because he never
gave up. Maybe because he had a "better attitude". Maybe because he
could do so much more. Or perhaps, just because God received all the
glory.
I don't know about you,
but sometimes we get all bent out of shape trying to figure out "the
why", when we really need to stop and remember "the Who".
(Lesson is still in
session for me on that one.)
So looking back at this
man in John chapter 5, we see Jesus asking another one of His unusual questions
- "Do you want to be made well?"
(pause for a chuckle if
you are paying attention)Well, duh. You think I am camping here at crazy
station just to get trampled by idiots?
But in all seriousness,
Whenever Jesus speaks, He always has a good reason. He wants to make sure we
are paying close attention. He wants to ensure that His benefactors know what
they are asking for. He also wants to make sure the crowd (which always seems
to follow) is listening and are witness to what is going to happen next.
So Jesus listens to the
man tell his story, how long he has been sick, how hard it is to get to the
waters, and the fact that he is all alone. Jesus is the very best Listener, and
you can tell by how the people come from miles around to hear Him. It's as if
He is speaking directly to you and none else. Yet His love encompasses the masses day after day, generation after generation. His love is pure and true
and everlasting. His love is only one of the Miracles that happened that day.
Then after listening to
the man describe his journey, Jesus gives him a job to do.
What? The poor guy is crippled. Give him a
break! Can't it just be a-la-ka-zam a-la-ka-zoo, I have a miracle in front of
you?
Hmmm. No, my friend. When Jesus comes to help us, we have to
meet Him in the middle. We must choose to participate in the miracle. He may
heal our brokenness and our diseases, but we have to pick up our bed and walk.
We must pick up the
pieces of our shattered lives, ruined plans and broken dreams bit by bit and
place them prayerfully in the hands of the Messiah, the Healer, the Gentle
Shepherd. Let Him take those pieces to redeem, salvage, soothe, and guide us
through the desert lands of grief and pain.
Even if it takes 38
years, or longer.
At this moment in time I
haven't even had children this long.
I
have lost two babies a little over 25 years ago.
I
am a wife and mother of four, including our 24 year old son who peacefully
walks on streets of gold while we plod painfully, slowly on the road of loss. This will be
our fifth Christmas without our sunshine called Nathanael.
I
have spent the last six years battling chronic pain and immune disorders which
dramatically change the way things are done, what can get done, and how quickly
I am done for.
I
am sitting by the Pool of my bethesda, waiting for a miracle.
The miracle beyond all
miracles is when we realize why we must wait so long.
I can't see the plan. I
can't see the road ahead. I can't get into the pool on my own, I must trust
that the Healer of my soul is leading me in ways I can never imagine, taking me
to paths of strength, peace and long-suffering. The Shepherd is guiding me on a
journey more miraculous than I could dream, and I am learning to be ok with
slow, because I am not alone.
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