Do you have questions for the woman with the issue of blood? I do!
I can’t seem to get past this story of the woman with the issue of blood that happened so long ago, just to think that this ancient woman had the same modern day issue that many women face today. However, the more I think about it the more my curiosity and desire for details keep me longing for more answers.
This ancient woman was struggling with above all things bleeding and possibly a very unhappy uterus. Does this sound familiar?
I am so glad that the men back in that day were brave enough to write this story about this woman’s bleeding issue in the Bible. I know they had no choice in the matter as God mandated it so to be.
Just imagine a God who care enough about possible menstrual health issues.
Now isn’t that good news that God is not spurned, or disgusted with our everyday female issues. As a matter of fact, His heart pains to see the pain that we as women suffer, pains not according to His original design.
How I wished I were there on that crowded road back then. How I wished I could have seen Jesus’ reaction when that woman touched Him. I am so amazed that He stopped what He was doing, where He was going to pay attention to this woman, with a bleeding problem.
I know that it is not stated that this is a menstrual issue, but as a woman and a nurse that is to me the most possible unspoken of situation.
Just imagine a man sitting to hear the account of a woman’s menstrual history, her tears, and her pains; I chuckle here for this is totally unheard of. Who talks about menstrual issues outside of her house much less with a strange man and bystanders that included men as well?
ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE!
As I travel back in my mind, I wish I could have sought out this woman. I wish I could have sit and chat. I wish I could have found out all that could I possibly could. You see I wondered what had happened before her encounter with this man. Jesus.
I wondered:
How old was she? How old was she when she had her first period? Did she have any issues as a teenager?
Was she active, or athletic? Did she have a heavy workload?
Was she single? Just imagine a single woman with a history of 12 years of bleeding wouldn't this indeed impact her chances of finding a spouse? If not was she married with kids? Did she have a miscarriage one or two perhaps?
She was bleeding for 12 years, was her husband still in the picture or was he embarrassed if he was, was he feeling deprived sexually?
I wonder:
When did her bleeding start? Was her period regular or irregular, painful, cramping and extremely unbearable? Was the bleeding gradual, was it heavy or was it just a constant spotting? Was she anemic or constantly fatigued?
Now, this may sound like an odd question for a woman with a bleeding issue, did she have digestive problems or irregular bowel movements? The fact that there were no antibiotics in the day was she plagued by yeast infections?
This bleeding would have been hard on all fronts. Could you imagine what her social and emotional life was like because she often may have felt isolated?
Was she a moody person, with constant anxiety and depression? Did she have many friends? How did she make a living, was she having issues financially?
I know that these thoughts that I have and this line of questioning is very, very time-consuming. Let’s be honest who has the time for all those questions these days.
Now here is what blows me away every time I look at this story.
This story is sandwiched in between another. A man whose daughter was born the very year this woman’s bleeding issues started was sick to death. Her father desperate to save his daughter from her grave illness reached out and pleaded with Jesus to come and heal his daughter. Now Jesus was on his way when the unthinkable happened. This woman touched Him. He stopped and took the time to ask.
I wondered if He would have had to ask this question back then? Could this woman or women like her have been sexually and physically abused? Sadly today even though painful, racked with guilt and shame it’s a question that I think about but have to ask. I know that this is delicate but silent sexual trauma may unknowingly create such inner stress and turmoil that could wreck a woman spirit, her mind, and her body.
It may have been the last of my questions but by no means the least, our women today live and lie in sleepless nights of silence. We never realize that that menstrual issue that we are facing is indeed a VITAL clue to the underlying health issues of our body that like that woman can last for years.
There is not a question that is not important today for the modern woman with modern-day issues. Have you ever walked in her shoes? Are her concerns your problems too?