Freed from torment

    In Mark 5:1-20, Jesus has gone to the region of the Gadarenes. There he meets a man possessed with a legion of evil spirits. This man had been living in the cemetery and attempts to bind and contain him with chains and irons had proved impossible. He was always able to break out of them. As if that wasn’t enough he would cry out and cut himself with stones. 
    What man could not do, Jesus was able to do. He commanded the evil spirits to come out of him and to go into a herd of pigs feeding nearby. When they entered the pigs, the entire herd ran down the hillside into the lake and drowned. When the people of the town heard about it, they came and saw the man clothed and in his right mind. When they found out what had happened, they asked Jesus to leave their area.
    In this short account, we meet a man who had been tormented for some time. We are not told for how long. His situation seemed hopeless because no matter what people tried to do to contain him, their efforts were futile. His torment was obvious because he would cry out and cut himself with stones. It seemed as if his torment would never end. Sometimes, we too may feel like that as we go through our own challenges. We may even find ourselves asking God, “How long?” as we look in vain for some light at the end of the tunnel. 
    What I like about this story is the fact that when Jesus came to that area, no one had told him about this demon-possessed man. He saw him for Himself and understood the torment he was going through. He commanded the evil spirits to come out of him even though the man had not asked for help. I always like to say that God sees, God knows and He cares. We may not always be able to articulate our cry for help but I believe that God sees and hears our tears and our moans and groans. He knows when we are in trouble and He is right there to help even though we may not clearly ask for it. 
    It’s also interesting that Jesus was not intimidated or turned off by the man’s condition. Jesus chose to go to Him. Though many had tried and had given up, the God of the universe was not about to do the same. I love the fact that God loves us enough that He doesn’t give up on us even when others have done so. There is nothing that we can do, there is no state that we can be in, that will stop God from coming to our rescue. God will meet us right where we are, we don’t even have to clean ourselves up first. Others may see us as unreachable, as hopeless, but God see us as worth the effort. And, what man cannot do, God is quite able to accomplish. That’s why we can call Him the God of the impossible!
    Finally, and thankfully, after a season of torment, the man is set free. I say thankfully because if  Jesus did it for him, He will certainly do it for us. It’s encouraging to note that negative seasons do not last forever. Even though to that man and to those around him, it seemed as if he would remain in that state forever, he did not. When Jesus came onto the scene, things changed. The deliverance that seemed impossible became possible. What seemed like it would last an eternity, did not. Your negative season will not last forever. When Jesus is in the picture, even the impossible will become possible. 
        What I also like is the man’s sense of peace which was evident to all. Without Christ, his life was one of torment. But, from the time Jesus stepped onto the scene and reached out to him, transformation took place, and he experienced peace. Our challenges are designed to frustrate, discourage, torment us. But when we let Jesus take charge, He gives us a peace that makes no sense. Even when the challenge has not been resolved, we can be at peace knowing that the Waymaker will make a way for us through our challenge to enable us to overcome it. God will never fail us!
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. There is no challenge or trial that is bigger than our God. He sees, He knows and He is able to deliver. When we put our trust in Him, He will not disappoint us.

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