Dorcas

Dorcas

Day 1

Dorcas

Her name means "Gazelle." "Tabitha" is its Hebrew equivalent.

She was an inhabitant of Joppa, a town on the Mediterranean coast thirty- five miles northwest of Jerusalem, she belonged to one of the earliest Christian congregations. She was a disciple known for her practical works of mercy.

Her sorrow was to have suffered a grave illness.

Her joy was to serve Jesus by serving the poor.

Key scriptures are Acts 9:36-43
36 At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did. 37 But it happened in those days that she became sick and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. 38 And since Lydda was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them. 39 Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. 40 But Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. 41 Then he gave her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called the saints and widows, he presented her alive. 42 And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord. 43 So it was that he stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.

Day 2

Disciples

Dorcas is the only woman in Scripture to be honored with the designation of disciple. The presence of women in groups of disciples is implied at times, but Dorcas is the only one specifically called a disciple.

Disciple is rooted from verbs that mean "to learn" or " to follow." This was a word that described the activity of the disciple of the New Testament. This word was almost used exclusively to describe a follower of Jesus.

A disciple dedicated their time to learn from Jesus' teachings. Most of which could be summed up in his commands to love God and each other. They accepted his word as truth without questioning and willingly put into practice what they had learned. They also followed Jesus. This word means to become like the one that they followed, adopting the views and ways of life that Jesus demonstrated.

Dorcas learned of Jesus and decided to follow him. She adopted his views and lifestyle and lovingly lived out his commands by ministering to the poor around her. There was no mistaking that Dorcas was a disciple of Jesus Christ. Her devotion was recorded for all generations.

If someone were to record our lives in just a few words, what words do you think they would choose? What if our lives were filled with loving God and others. Do you think our lives could be summed up as Dorcas's life "In _______ there was a disciple named _______."

Day 3

Read Acts 9:36 - 41

Describe what you think the scene was like when Peter brought Dorcas back to her friends and neighbors.

Have you ever experienced such and event? What were the circumstances? How did you feel?

Acts 9:42

What sort of response did people have to Dorcas's miracle?

God was definitely glorified through Dorcas's life, death and resurrection. What if Dorcas had not been raised? Would God still have been glorified? How?

Day 4

Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. -Acts 9:39

Reflect on Acts 9:36 - 43

Praise God for his power over death.

Offer thanks for answered prayers.

Confess any habit of limiting God's power to answer your prayer.

Ask God to make you a woman whose love for God has practical ramifications for those around her.

Day 5

Lift your heart

Is there a Dorcas in your life, a good man or woman who is suffering in some way? Someone, perhaps, who has been a great support in your own life? Resist the temptation to become depressed about what is happening to them and, instead, spend time this week praying in light of Dorcas's story. Let her miracle increase your faith and shape your prayers. If you have a photograph of the person, put it where you are most likely to be reminded to pray. Ask God to bring light out of the darkness of their present circumstances.

Lord, show me how to pray with increasing faith, aware that your Spirit is no less powerful today than two thousand years ago. Act on behalf of your servant, and glorify your name by what you do.

Mary Magdalene

Day 1

Mary: "bitterness"

Though mistakenly characterized as a prostitute in many popular writings, the Bible says only that Mary was possessed by seven demons. She probably suffered a serious mental or physical illness from which Jesus delivered her. She is a beautiful example of a woman whose life was poured out in response to God's extravagant grace.

Her Sorrow: To watch Jesus' agony at Calvary.

Her Joy: To have been the first witness to the Resurrection.

Key Scriptures: (I will post a few today and a few on Wed) Matthew 27:56, 61; 28:1; Mark 15: 40, 47; 16:1-19; Luke 8:2; 24:10; John 19:25; 20:1-18

Matthew 27:55-61
55Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.
The Burial of Jesus 57As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

Luke 8:1-3
1After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod's household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.

Luke 24:9-12
9When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. 10It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. 11But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. 12Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.

Day 2
Women in Jesus' Life and Ministry

Cooking, caring for family members, spinning, weaving, sewing, baking bread, cleaning--all of these were common tasks for women in New Testament times. Most women spent the majority of their time and energy within their homes, caring for their families. But several women stepped outside the cultural expectations of their time to play a significant role in the ministry of Jesus.

Mark tells us that a number of women "followed him [Jesus] and cared for his needs" (Mark 15:41). During the years of Jesus' ministry, when he and his disciples weren't earning an income, several women stepped in to care for them. They used their own financial resources to support Jesus and the disciples (Luke 8:3). While Jesus was teaching and healing, these women probably spent their time purchasing food, preparing it, and serving it. Perhaps they also found homes for Jesus and his disciples to stay in while on their travels. These particular women probably either didn't have children or had children that were grown, so their responsibilities at home were decreased, and they could instead provide for the needs of Jesus and his disciples.

Women watched Jesus suffer of the cross, remaining there until he had breathed his last and was buried. Women were the first to go to the tomb on Sunday morning and the first to witness the Resurrection.

Luke's gospel in particular portrays Jesus as someone who both understood and respected women, conferring on them a stature that most of them had not previously enjoyed. Jesus' dealings with women throughout the Gospels gives all of us, men and women, a model to follow as we consider the status and treatment of the women with whom we come into contact every day.

Day 3

Mark 15:33-47
The Death of Jesus
33At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
35When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah."
36One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down," he said.
37With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
38The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"
40Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

The Burial of Jesus
42It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 43Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. 44Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 46So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. 47Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

Why do you think these women went and watched Jesus die on the cross? What drew them?

Would you have gone to the cross? Would you have watched from a distance or stayed at home?

It is very likely that these women knew following Jesus to Jerusalem could be dangerous, but they went anyway. Would you still follow Jesus anywhere if it meant danger to you or to your family?

John 20:1-18
The Empty Tomb
1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
3So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene
10Then the disciples went back to their homes, 11but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"
"They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." 14At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
15"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."
16Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).
17Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
18Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

What did Mary think had happened to Jesus? Why was Jesus' resurrection so hard for them to believe?

Would Jesus' resurrection from the dead have been hard for you to believe? Why or why not?

Why do you think Mary didn't recognize Jesus? Why would Jesus' speaking her name make her know it was really him?

Do you think God knows you by name? If your not sure read Isaiah 43:1

Day 4

Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1

Jesus not only knew Mary's name, he knew everything about her. He remembered the day he had cast the demons out of her. He remembered her many practical kindnesses. He saw how she suffered with him die on the cross.

Just as Jesus knew the intimate details of Mary's life, he knows the same about each of us. When you are tempted to lose hope, when life seems too empty to go on, when grief overwhelms you--Jesus cares. When those you love have let you down, when you think you can't go on for another minute, when your problems crush you--Jesus cares. He calls your name, just as he called Mary's. And you, too, can go on like the women who went from the tomb, perhaps still a bit afraid yet "filled with joy" (Matthew 28:8)

Day 5

Lift your Heart. One day this week set your alarm clock so that you wake up a half-hour before dawn. Find a spot where you can watch the sunrise. In the early morning shadows, tell God about some area of darkness in your own life or in the life of someone you love. Perhaps it's an illness, a persistent sin, loneliness, a troubled marriage, an addictions, or a wayward child. Whatever it is, surrender it by imagining yourself placing it in the garden tomb next to the body of Jesus. As the sun rises, meditate on that Sunday morning and remember that when Jesus walked out of the tomb you walked out with him. Ask God for the faith to wait and watch for his delivering power.

Lord, create in me a faith like Mary Magdalene, not a legalistic understanding but a desire to follow because of an overwhelming sense of gratitude and love for your extravagant grace. Help me surrender my darkness to you and flood me with the light of your presence.

Joanna

Day 1

Joanna: "The Lord Gives Generously"

Joanna was a woman of high rank in Herod's court, she experienced healing at Jesus' hands. She responded by giving herself totally, supporting his ministry and following him wherever he went. The story of her healing may have been known to Herod himself.

Her Joy: To find the tomb empty except for the angels who proclaimed Jesus alive.

Luke 8:1-3; 24:10

1After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod's household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. 10It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.

Day 2
Healing

One of Jesus' early healings was of a man suffering from the skin disease known as leprosy (Mark 1:40-42). People dreaded leprosy not only because of its destruction of skin and extremities but because it was thought to be contagious. Anyone with the disease was an outcast, unclean, separated from friends, family, and all that was familiar, with little or no hope for a cure. With only two words, "Be clean!"

Jesus did what all the others had failed to do, and the man went away healed. Joanna is listed with several other women whom Jesus had "cured of evil spirits and diseases." Scripture doesn't say exactly what her particular ailment was, but obviously it was something significant, something from which she had been unable to find relief through conventional methods. She and the other healed women now followed Jesus and supported him and his disciples.

No disease or deformity was beyond Jesus' healing power. He removed paralysis (Mark 2:3-12). He stopped bleeding (Mark 5:25-29). Those who were mute and blind could speak and see (Matthew 9:21-33; 20:29-34; Mark 8:22-26). Fevers left bodies at his touch (Mark 1:30-31). He restored shriveled limbs (Mark 3:1-5; Luke 13:11-13). Those possessed by evil spirits of one sort or another found relief and deliverance at Jesus' hands (Matthew 12:22; Mark 1:23-26; 9:17-29)

The same Jesus still heals today. Sometimes through the remarkable ability and knowledge of modern medicine and doctors. Sometimes without any human intervention. Sometimes by bringing the sick one home to heaven. Always divine, if not miraculous. And always with his loving, all-pervasive touch.

Day 3

I hope you won't mind, but I am going to take a little detour from Joanna today. I want to share with you one of my favorite scriptures regarding healing.

Mark 2:1-11

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

1A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven." 6Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7"Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 8Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? 9Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? 10But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, 11"I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." 12He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"

This particular instance of Jesus healing an ailment fills my heart with so much joy. Not because he healed the mans paralysis buy because he healed his spirit. Jesus, first forgave the man of his sins. Focusing on the man's spiritual healing, the eternal.

I love the picture this paints for me. I know there have been many times in my life where I have be paralyzed, immobilized by the sins or pain in my life. At those times I know I can call on my friends to bring me to the feet of Jesus. I have many faithful friends that have carried me with their prayers to the only place that I could find healing. Do you have friends that call on God for you when you are in need? Are you one of the faithful that believes Jesus can heal all things when we bring it to Him in prayer? Are you willing to carry your friend to the feet of Jesus so that they may experience eternal healing?

I have seen people healed physically and I have loved ones who suffer with illness. I will never claim to know why some are healed and some are not. I do know that God's will is that we all have spiritual healing. His hope for us all is that we have the faith to come to Jesus and be saved. I know that we will be given spiritual healing when we ask for it.

Day 4

Dear Lord,
I don't know all of the women in this online devotional personally, but you do. I praise you that we are connected through this devotional as a body of Christ. I thank you that each of us has specific gifts that you knew were just right for us. I ask Lord, that we, as a body, continue to seek your Word and most importantly, you. This devotional about your amazing ability to heal is such an encouragement to those who are afflicted. Lord, I ask that you stir in our hearts the ability to believe in your healing, that ability to recognize your power in all things. Lord, I also ask that you help us to see that we are an extension of your body and that we are also filled with your power to heal others. Lord I ask, in your name, Jesus Christ, that you will heal all those that belong to this devotional, heal their bodies, minds and relationships, Lord, restore them to you, so that the focus can be upward and not inward. You are amazing, Amen.

Day 5

Joy comes in the morning. Joanna discovered this in a miraculous way on Jesus' resurrection day. She went to his tomb expecting to minister to his dead body and to grieve. Instead, her sorrow turned to tremendous joy. At the end of the day, at the end of this life, there will be a joyful morning for all who trust in him.

Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. ~Psalm 30:5

Where morning dawns and evening fades you call forth songs of joy. ~Psalm 65:8

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. ~Psalm 90:14

You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. ~Isaiah 26:19

The Woman with the Issue of Blood

Day 1

Her Character: So desperate for healing, she ignored the conventions of the day just for the chance to touch Jesus.

Her Sorrow: To have suffered a chronic illness that isolated her from others. (Leviticus 15:25-27)

Her Joy: That after long years of suffering, she finally found peace and freedom.

Matthew 9:20-22
20Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed."
22Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.

Mark 5:25-34
A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." 29Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"
31"You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' "
32But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

Luke 8:43-48
As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. 43And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. 44She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.
45"Who touched me?" Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you."
46But Jesus said, "Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me."
47Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. 48Then he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace."

Day 2

Twelve years of loneliness. Twelve years in which physicians had bled her of all her wealth. Her private affliction becoming a matter of public record. Every cup she handled, every chair she sat on could transmit defilement to others. Even though her impurity was considered a ritual matter rather than an ethical one, it had rendered her an outcast, making it impossible for her to live with a husband, bear a child, or enjoy the intimacy of friends and family. Surely the rabbi could censure her.

But instead of scolding and shaming her, Jesus praised her: "Daughter, you faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

His words must have been like water breaching a dam, breaking through her isolation, setting her free. He had addressed her not harshly, but tenderly; not as "woman" or "sinner," but rather as daughter. She was no longer alone, but part of his family by virtue of her faith.

That day, countless men and women had brushed against Jesus, but only one had truly touched him. And instead of being defiled by contact with her, his own touch had proven the more contagious, rendering her pure and whole again.

How would you feel if you had the opportunity to actually touch Jesus physically? Would Jesus recognize your touch by your faith? Do you have the strength to reach out and grab at the healing and freedom that He desires you to have?

Day 3

"your faith has healed you"

Matthew 17:20 He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Do you believe you can move mountains? Do you believe that the same spirit that healed the woman with the issue of blood lives inside of you?

Heavenly Father, Forgive us for our little faith. Lord, today will you remind me that I am a new creation in you. You have healed me from the curse of death. Remind me that all things are possible with you. In Jesus Name~Amen

Day 4
Promises in Scripture

I am the Lord, who heals you.~Exodus 15:26

O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.~Psalm 30:2

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his hold name. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion.~Psalm 103:1-4

"They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."~Revelations 21:3-4

Day 5

Praise God that His touch produces peace and freedom.

Offer thanks for faith is a gift that increases with use.

Confess any tendency to play it so safe you actually begin to suffocate the faith you have.

Ask God to bring this woman's story to mind the next time you are faced with an opportunity to exercise real faith.

Lift Your Heart. Take a moment this week to sit in quiet. Picture yourself reaching out to touch Jesus' robes. What do you need healing for? What affliction are you suffering from? What part of your life is calling out for freedom? Imagine being released from these things, and believe it will happen. Your faith, no matter how small can move mountains.