He Still Reaches Out to Touch Us with Healing

Lent starts February 14, and so does the RESCUED Blessed is She Lent devotional. This year, you’ll be receiving an excerpt from the Lent devotional every day in your inbox (in lieu of our regular daily devo). We want to pray with one heart and one mind as the BIS sisterhood. If you prefer to have the book, purchase the 2024 Blessed is She Lent devotional RESCUED right here. Right upon purchase, you’ll receive a link to come into the free Blessed is She app to walk through the Lenten season with us in daily live prayer, small groups, and more. Together let’s look to the Lamb of God who came to rescue each one of us.

Moved with pity, [Jesus] stretched out his hand, touched [the leper], and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.” // Mark 1:41

My husband has a wonderful sense of humor. For years, as I was getting ready for bed at night, he would serenade my rather voluminous chest. He’d often use the theme song from some movie we’d just watched to do so. You can imagine having your breasts serenaded to the tune of Darth Vader’s theme song.

Thanks to my husband, there’s a great deal of laughter in my house.

However, when I learned I would need a double mastectomy, I didn’t mourn my breasts for myself, but for my husband. And the thing that made me the most sorrowful was that my hugs for him would never feel the same. I was surprised at how sad that thought made me.

As I lamented this with my women’s prayer group one day before my surgery, one of my dearest friends in the group offered this insight. She said, “You know I’ve been thinking about your hugs feeling different. And as I was praying about that, it came to me that, yes, your hugs may feel different, but now, your hearts will be even closer.”

I burst into tears. What a remarkably merciful thought! When my dear friend made this observation, it was no different than the poor leper in today’s Gospel begging the Lord to heal him. Through my friend, Jesus was moved with pity. And in no less of a visceral way, He reached out through her, touched my heart, and healed me.

And, as it turns out, my friend was absolutely right: our hearts are closer when we hug now. I can feel it.

Can you recall a moment when you felt the mercy of the Lord in a very palpable way? A time when you sensed the touch of Jesus coming to you through another? Give thanks for this moment and then, just like the leper, go and tell someone about your experience of the healing love of Jesus (see Mark 1:45). 

About Liz Kelly Stanchina

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Liz Kelly Stanchina is a jazz singer who met Jesus in late-night adoration. She is the community leader for women’s formation at the Word on Fire Institute and the author of more than a dozen award-winning books, including Anchored by Hope, Meditations to Calm the Anxious Soul, Jesus Approaches, Love Like a Saint, and A Thrill of Hope. Her take home retreat for Jesus Approaches has been called “a spa for the soul.” She holds advanced degrees in creative writing and Catholic studies. She is trained as a spiritual director, leading retreats and speaking around the world with a particular focus on helping women to flourish in their faith. Visit her website at LizK.org. Her widely read column, Your Heart, His Home, is available on Substack.