Last year I was introduced to an author by the name of Frederick Buechner. Great writer with a tough past. Through the introduction, I came across a meditational book called, "Listening to Your Life." It has bits and pieces of his writings for each day of the year. I enjoy the diversity of his writings as he writes both fiction and non-fiction. On November 14th, I was not prepared for the way my heart would be stirred by the words written on the page of this small book.
Jairus' twelve year old daughter had passed and mourners were gathering together at her home to mourn together. Jesus, upon his arrival, told the gathered people that she was only asleep. I can't imagine how Jairus felt. Maybe slapped in the face? How could she be asleep?? They had watched her die...checked her vitals...known that she was not just asleep. But Jesus said that she was. And the next thing He did...was walk over to the bed where her lifeless body lay and He grabbed her hand and He said, "Talitha Cumi." (In Aramaic this means, "little girl, get up.") The little, precious girl then rose to find many people astonished and amazed.(Mark 5: 35-43)
"Little girl, get up. Little girl, get up. Little girl, get up."
This means something to me. Something very powerful, in fact. A lot of my life has been marked by trauma---many losses both great and small---and many of these things have left permanent scars on my heart--causing me to feel as if parts of my heart are dead...lifeless. Parts of my childhood were stripped by many moves, few friends, people in and out, inconsistencies, losses, and parents who were still trying to figure out who they were, let alone try to help me navigate through childhood and onward.
Little girl, get UP. Get UP. Get UP. He didn't say, "little girl, awake" or "little girl, we're here, you can open your eyes." He told her to rise...to do something...to move. I believe He is telling me the same: to get up, rise, and move. I may be scarred by the pain of my past, but I'm not paralyzed, I'm not defeated, I'm not without hope, and I surely am not dead. These parts of me have merely been....asleep. And I believe that through the story of Jairus' daughter, I am being reminded by the Spirit to 'get up, little girl... your journey is not over. You have so much more in you and there's still a lot of life to live!!"
And I live in that today.
