Hope and the Single Woman — Grateful, yet Grieving
By Tracie Lobstein
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him.”
(Romans 15:13 NIV)
In Mark 5:25-34, we read the story of a woman filled with hope—a hope for healing. She had experienced a medical life event 12 years prior and had been hemorrhaging ever since. We didn’t get to see the level of vibrancy she had before the bleeding began. But her condition would have left her in a physically weak state, shaped her lifestyle, and placed limits on her. With no home remedy to heal herself, she put her hope in others and went broke.
Like the hemorrhaging woman, many women experience a sudden life event that brings about unwelcome change. For me, it was when I found myself alone. I didn’t have a physical ailment challenging me, but every day revolved around how I would face the daunting alone time each evening. I had never lived alone before and had always come home to someone to tend to, serve, and communicate with—to a relationship.
My struggle was emotional. It doesn’t seem to compare to the hemorrhaging woman’s condition, but out of hope, I, too, began reaching to others. She reached out to doctors because of a medical need. That made sense. I reached out to friends, hoping to find a substitute for the relationship I lacked. At the time, that made sense, too.
The expenses I incurred by constantly meeting friends for dinner, movies, and entertainment forced me to stop my pursuit. Being broke, the hemorrhaging woman’s pursuit also came to a stop. Still alone in despair, she heard Jesus was nearby. Fueled by the hope of being whole, she moved into action again. But this time, in a different direction. She put forth all her strength to reach through the force of a crowd to touch Jesus’s clothes. At the end of her reach was the Spirit.
I, too, shifted the direction of my reach from active friendships to Jesus. My friendships remained valuable and didn’t cease, but I no longer put my hope in them. My hope was in the Lord, and my relationship with Him began to flourish.
Hope moves us forward, keeps us connected, strengthens our weariness, and opens the door for God’s power. The God of hope has the power to provide the experience we yearn for—the desire to be whole after being broken.
Pause and consider the direction in which you extend your reach.
