A Life Transformed

 Hello friends! Perhaps you noticed I’ve been out-of-pocket for some time now. I lost my sister to cancer in January after a long battle, and tomorrow marks two years since my husband suddenly died. 

      To be honest, some days are a struggle. Yet I’ve missed connecting with you, especially in this time of isolation. 

      This story is from an article I recently wrote for a small publication and I wanted to share it with you. It’s about a fascinating woman named Mary Magdalene. After being dramatically healed by Jesus, she became one of His most devoted followers—seeing to both Jesus’s needs as well as His disciples. She is especially important today, since she was the first person to see Jesus after He was raised from the dead. 

     I have truly enjoyed researching and writing about this fascinating woman. I’ve tried to convey what her life may have been like, basing it on what the Bible tells us about her. I am listing the specific verses at the end. Enjoy!

*********************

     Have you ever felt tormented? Plagued by a suffocating blanket of despair and hopelessness that made even the smallest tasks seem impossible?  Or, perhaps, you’ve felt anxiety so intense it made breathing difficult and you were unable to form a rational thought? Take those experiences and multiply them 100 times over, and you will begin to understand just how horrific my life was the day I met Jesus. 

     I can only imagine what I looked like – even smelt like, on that day. I’m sure I was a terrible sight. Even children were afraid of me—worried my erratic behavior might do them harm. 

     My life was one of isolation. Who could possibly understand the confusion and chaos that dominated my thinking—that dominated my life? There was no way to escape the noise inside my head. I found myself screaming in a futile attempt to drown out the cruel voices. I was utterly drained—so tired of trying to fight an unbeatable foe. 

There was no cure for what I had. Every strange remedy that came along, I tried; but it was only a  waste of my hard earned money.

     The day I met Jesus I was having one of the worst episodes I’d ever faced. What would’ve become of me,  if Jesus hadn’t called out to me that day? He spoke my name – Mary of Magdala – just hearing His voice told me there was something about Him that was different. 

     Then Jesus looked into my eyes, and it was as if He could see straight into my soul. Probably sensing my fear of discovery, He spoke my name once more. Although I was dirty from days of not being in my right mind, the Messiah put His hands on my head and commanded the demons to leave me. That’s when it happened – one moment there was a raging storm inside my mind, and the next, everything was totally silent. It was like when Jesus spoke the words, “Peace be still,” in the middle of a fierce storm. The wind instantly stopped and the raging waves became calm. Only this time, the calm was in my mind. 

     The contrast was so startling that I collapsed at the Master’s feet and sobbed tears of deepest gratitude. I was free. Free! The voices were gone. The torment I had suffered most of my life was gone. I had never experienced such peace in my entire life.

     After Jesus touched me that day, I was never the same. I kept saying, “thank you, thank you,” over and over again. But of course, the words were totally inadequate. How do you express gratitude for having your mind restored? Suddenly, I was filled with joy. Finally, I was free of the chains that had kept me bound for as long as I could remember. 

     After the last thank you, I ran back to my house. I bathed away the external dirt while reveling at how clean I felt on the inside. Quickly packing a few necessities, I tied my belongings to my donkey. Turning my back on the remnants of the nightmare I once lived, I hurried to find Jesus. I would offer all that I had to help others find the same healing and freedom I had just experienced. One thing I knew: I would follow Jesus, my Messiah, for as long as I lived.

     Gone were the days of isolation. For more than two years, as we traveled from town to town, my days were filled with serving others. Whether I was mending clothes or preparing a meal, it brought such joy. The work was both exhausting and exhilarating. I never grew tired of watching Jesus as He continued to bring healing to the broken. I witnessed miracle after miracle—I saw Him transform lives. He didn’t just minister to the masses; He ministered to the individual. He saw each person as unique and valuable. He spoke of his Father, the God of Abraham and David, with such intimacy, love and reverence. I, as well as His other followers, longed to hear more.

     Because of all the miracles, Jesus started to attract larger and larger crowds. I was astounded the day I saw, with my own eyes, how Jesus fed thousands of people with just two fish and five small loaves of bread. But never was there a more exuberant crowd than the day word spread that Jesus was coming into Jerusalem. As we entered the city, the streets were packed on either side, everyone vying for the chance to see Jesus. As He rode past them on a donkey, they laid their coats on the ground and waved palm branches, calling out, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

     Yet, crowds can be so fickle. Unbelievably, only days later, those same crowds turned against Jesus.  They screamed, “Crucify, Him! Crucify, Him!” 

     It all happened so fast. Soldiers came to arrest Jesus, though He had done nothing wrong. Most of the disciples fled, but I remained along with some of the other women. I could barely believe what I witnessed.

     Once, I had stood as an observer to countless miracles. I listened to Jesus preach and teach the good news.  But suddenly, I was seeing Him beaten, flogged, and then nailed to a cross. As each spike was driven into His hands and feet, it felt as though my own soul was being pierced too. I stood by helplessly as Jesus, the very Son of God, hung on a cross in agony. Jesus had told us He had to die, but we didn’t understand what that really meant. When He finally cried out, “It is finished,” and took His last breath, I wanted to die too. Just as darkness covered the land for three hours, a dark desolation filled my heart.

     For the next few days, doubts and confusion consumed me. Although the old voices didn’t return, my own thoughts assailed me. Would I ever see Jesus again and have the eternal life He promised?

      When the Sabbath was over, I set out to Jesus’ tomb early in the morning to prepare His body for burial. But when I arrived, the massive stone, at the tomb’s entrance, had been removed. Who would’ve robbed His grave? Nearly hysterical with grief, I stooped to look inside. Two beautiful beings as bright as lightning sat where His body once laid. Hearing a noise behind me, I turned and saw Jesus. At first, I didn’t even recognize Him. But when he spoke my name, my heart leapt. His voice was unmistakable. It was Jesus and He was — ALIVE!  

     Over the next few days, more than 500 of us witnessed the resurrected Jesus. Before He ascended into Heaven, we learned the necessity of His sacrifice.  Without His death, burial, and resurrection, none of us would ever be able to enter the kingdom of Heaven. Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have everlasting life.”

     Until the end of my days, I couldn’t stop telling everyone about my Savior. I wanted nothing more than to see all come to experience faith in Jesus and have eternal life. 

________________________________

Luke 8: 1 – 3 (ESV) Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, 3 and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

John 20: 1 – 18  (ESV) Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic,“Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews,3 Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

Please follow and like us: