Today’s chapter is Mark 5

Tom writes:

Shame. It’s an ugly word that gnaws at your innards. And yet it hangs around Jesus like an unshakable fug. Some people, like the synagogue ruler, have to put themselves through it for the sake of their loved ones; it can’t have been easy to wriggle and squirm around on the floor in front of the people you were meant to be leading. And others, like the bleeding woman, are put through it by Jesus for the sake of their healing. But, they were the lucky ones. Through letting Jesus expose their shame they actually saw him euthanise it. Through showing their shame to Jesus they saw him grab it, conquer it and ultimately kill it in his atonement. The ones who really suffered from shame were those who were not willing to shame themselves before Jesus. The grieving relatives just thought they knew better than Jesus and broke from their mourning to make sure everyone knew it.

The inhabitants of his home town chose to turn their feelings of shame into a finger-pointing rejection. The tragedy is that all these carriers of shame had a chance to see their crushing burdens lifted but they preferred a moment of saving face to a life-time of walking free. We all have some inner monologue that recoils at the prospect of tongues being tutted at us or heads being shaken at us. This monologue is the death of us. Through clinging to our own shame-management techniques we strengthen the strangle that shame exerts on our lives. So next time you have the chance to confess sin, or to expose weakness, or to ask for prayer - take it. Stretch out your withered hand, squirm on the floor and let your darkness come to light - that’s the way Jesus, the shame killer, will take all of your shame and cast it into the sea.

Question for reflection

What do you do with your shame?

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Mark 5 - Monday 8th April