The Lord in his mercy

Scripture: As (Jesus) was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed, begged that he would be allowed to stay with him. Jesus would not let him but said to him, "Go home to your people and tell them all that the Lord in his mercy has done for you." Mark 5:18-19

Prayer: Help me to reflect on all that the Lord has done for me and let me not keep it a secret.

Response: Wouldn't it be easier to share, even demonstrate your healing to a like audience of believers, than share intimately what the Lord has done in your life with what you might say are outsiders? And don't think that you are being launched on a raft to drift towards some far shore. You would be surprised to discover, maybe, that those who seek to hear the miracle of grace and forgiveness are within earshot. They may stand, appearing disinterested, their voices flat and expressions cynical—even doubting. However, if you look into their eyes—that is, if they will raise their heads and direct their gaze, you will see a seeking, a search, a quest not yet satisfied or reached—whatever their status.

So you see that this fellow, once possessed roaming alone among the tombs, feared by the populace in the village, unable to be restrained by chains—a brute of a man, it seems, is healed and he cannot keep it a secret by remaining in the safe company of the Healer, but is told go home to your people and tell them all that the Lord in his mercy has done for you.

Isn't it true that once healed and that over and over again there might be an inclination to keep the healing as your secret—to contain it within the regions of the heart, lest someone think that you needed healing in the first place? Well, if you have not gotten it yet—the healing is not to be contained. You might not feel comfortable proclaiming it from a mountaintop, but you are called upon to share it with others, especially those who could not imagine you needed and received healing. Imagine that!