MJ is a real person. Her name or location is not important. What happened to her is.
As an infant, no one touched MJ unless it was necessary. Her mother fed her by propping a bottle with pillows. Of course, mother bathed her and changed her but as quickly as possible. She spent the rest of the time alone in her crib or playpen.
When she took her first steps no one picked her up when she
fell. When she was sick, she languished
in her room. No one held her or
comforted her. When bees stung her, her
mother washed her and put ointment on the bites. Then she left the child to cry herself to sleep.
MJ was underweight, skinny in fact. She had trouble learning things as fast as
other kids but she did the things normal kids do. She attended school, had a couple of friends, went to movies, and
even joined the swim team in high school.
All her life she longed for someone to touch her, hold her,
say soothing words to her. That got her
into many difficulties when boys discovered her. She liked the hugs, the kisses, and thought anything was okay
when she wanted a loving touch.
One day a friend invited her to church. Something happened there. She met Jesus and He touched her with love
unlike any she ever knew. She heard
about all the times Jesus touched someone.
She heard testimonies from people whom He touched.
Wherever He went, he touched someone, the leper, the sick,
and all who sought Him.
She heard Matthew 8:14-15 Matt 8:14-15 And when Jesus was
come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever.
15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she
arose.
She knew that the same Jesus who touched Peter's mother-in-law those many years ago also touched her in that little church.
She knew that the same Jesus who touched Peter's mother-in-law those many years ago also touched her in that little church.
She found the thing she searched for all her life. She received a touch from Him and it made
her whole.
Internet searches showed her that lack of touch kept babies
from thriving and they sometimes even die.
As people get older some of their senses get duller. They don’t taste as much, have trouble
hearing, and their eyesight gets duller.
Their need for touch increases as they age. She read that older people
sometimes go to church just so they can shake the preacher’s hand as they
leave.
She knew that only God could fill the empty space in her
heart. And He did.
Photos from Wikimedia Commons
Public Domain
Jesus and Girl
Jesus Washes Feet
This is so true. Many people WANT to be touched but are not--and it makes very lonely people. That is only one reason faith is so important.
ReplyDelete~R