Oops

I just signed in to check out the blog for today and realized I was the one who should have written, I guess it's better late than never.

I have been struggling with one verse in Mark 5 for the better part of a week. Verse 17 says, "and the crowd began pleading with Jesus to go away and leave them alone". This verse comes at the end of Jesus healing a man who was possessed by many demons, the demons leave the man and enter a herd of 2,000 pigs that throw themselves into a lake and drown.

Did Jesus do something offensive? Was it His sheer power that they were afraid of? What makes them PLEAD with Him to leave?

Maybe a better question, what makes us plead with Him to leave? Maybe it's when He calls us to give of our financial resources, whether to a friend or the church, we simply hate parting with a dollar. Maybe, it's when Jesus calls us to stand for Him in the midst of a conversation headed in the wrong direction. Maybe it's when we feel that quiet conviction of not reading his word or spending time with him through prayer.

I'm not sure about you, but I've asked Jesus to leave in each of these situations. I have been disobedient, strong willed and just not ready to give Him every part of my life. It's easy to judge these folks and wonder why they pleaded with Jesus to leave but when we spend some time applying this verse to our lives, we may just do the same thing. Have you ever pleaded with Him to leave?

Aimee