Good morning…
I woke from a brief nap yesterday with an interesting image saturating my mind. I sensed I had been in the presence of Jesus, as if our living LORD had really responded to my early morning prayer, “Steal My Show.” Mysteriously it seemed he had actually come from heaven to our home, and I caught him in action like one of our kids once caught the tooth fairy. Then before he could ascend again to sit beside our heavenly Father, I tied my multi-colored security blanket to the hem of his white robe. In that instant I became the combination of two memorable women from the Bible.
On one hand, I was the unnamed woman hiding in the crowd when Jesus actually passed through her town. Remember with me the story. A woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind (Jesus) and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped (Luke 8:43-44, NIV).
On the other hand I felt like Mary Magdalene crying alone in the early hours beside the unexpectedly empty tomb. As she begged the gardener “Where have they taken my Lord?” the hidden identity of the “gardener” suddenly became revealed. Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” (John 20:16-17, NIV).
I too know Jesus as my only Source of holistic healing and, having just been wrapped like a blanket in his presence as I slept, I wanted to hold on to my Teacher as he ascended to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. So before fully waking I did the one thing my groggy mind thought to do. I tied the corner my security blanket to the corner of his garment and then suddenly I woke from my dream state. Later I recreated the image in my mind and snapped a photo to remember. Now, friends, what exactly are we invited to remember?
If we are to access the life-giving power of the resurrection, we must consciously connect our whole self to our Healer in heaven. Our security blanket is designed to be constantly tied and re-tied to the edge of Christ’s forever flowing cloak. If we tie our security blanket anywhere else, we will be led into the unhealthy toxicity of co-dependence, into the unending tug-o-war between who is right and who is wrong, and into our human addiction to mine, more, and must-have.
We all tie our security somewhere. This day and each day, where are you tying your security blanket?
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord]” (Matthew 6:24, AMP).
…Sue…
