“Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.”
- Matthew 9:35 ESV
I was sitting on the porch this morning watching my human drink his coffee and read his Bible.
Now, I’ve watched him do this enough times to know that when he gets real quiet and starts turning those thin pages, something important is going on.
This morning he was reading about Jesus.
Seems like everywhere Jesus went, people followed Him.
Crowds.
Sick people.
Hurting people.
People carrying burdens you couldn’t see just by looking at them.
And Jesus didn’t just walk past them.
He stopped.
He taught them.
He listened to them.
He touched them.
And He healed many of them.
I got to thinking about that.
Dogs have a pretty simple way of looking at things.
If somebody is hurting, you get close.
If somebody is lonely, you sit beside them.
If somebody needs a little encouragement, you wag your tail like you’ve been waiting all day just to see them.
Maybe there’s something Believers can learn from that.
Jesus never seemed too busy for hurting people.
He saw people others might have overlooked.
He noticed the ones who were sick, broken, rejected and desperate.
And He showed them compassion.
That got me looking at my own life.
I wonder how many hurting people I walk past because I’m too busy with my own stuff.
How many people need somebody to stop and listen?
How many need a little grace instead of a lecture?
How many need to know somebody cares?
Now, I’m just an old dog, so I’m not claiming I can heal anybody.
I can’t.
But I know the One who can.
And maybe sometimes Jesus wants to use His followers to bring a little healing into somebody’s day.
Not always by fixing the problem.
Sometimes just by showing up.
A kind word.
A listening ear.
A helping hand.
A prayer.
A little compassion when somebody least expects it.
My human took another drink of coffee and turned the page.
I laid my head on his foot and thought about all those people who came looking for Jesus.
They came broken.
They came hurting.
They came desperate.
And Jesus met them right where they were.
And t was hat’s still what He does today.
So if you’re hurting, don’t hide from the Healer.
And if you know somebody who’s hurting, don’t just walk by.
Stop.
Listen.
Love.
Pray.
Show up.
Because sometimes the hands and feet Jesus uses to bring His love to a hurting world… belong to people sitting on porches drinking coffee and reading their Bibles.
And every now and then… even an old dog can learn something from that.
Jesus is still the Healer.
Sometimes He brings healing through a miracle.
Sometimes through medicine.
And sometimes through a person who simply decides to stop, care and stay awhile.
Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem
