Friday, April 14, 2023

Born in a country where untouchability is a matter of pride for the so-called high caste people, I am struck by the phrase, “took her by the hand.” Our only son is a physical therapist. My husband and I have always encouraged him to use Jesus’ model of touching and healing. Jesus healed the sick by touching most of them. His healing was both through His touch and words. His touch was as powerful as His words. Sometimes people simply touched Him and were healed, including the woman with a discharge of blood (Matt. 9:20-22). We were prohibited to touch one another directly during the pandemic season. God helped us overcome, although we lost some dear ones. In our story today, the recipient of healing was the mother-in-law of Simon Peter. Jesus not only healed her, but empowered her to serve. His call of Matthew contains similar words to that of Peter’s mother-in-law: “As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he rose and followed Him” (Matt. 9:9). All of us have a purpose: to follow Jesus and to serve Him.

Being part of the faculty with Haggai-India and also being in leadership in South Asia, I get many opportunities to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.