Standing Room Only
Disclaimer: Nothing in this blog post is intended to be considered medical or mental health advice or treatment. It’s written from the perspective of the author’s lived experience and reflects personal views expressed with the intent to encourage and share hope.
We do a lot for our friends.
When our long-time friend tells us she’s getting married soon and invites us to the wedding, we reserve a hotel room and book a flight or rent a vehicle and go. If our first choice of hotel or vehicle is unavailable, we keep looking so we can celebrate our friend’s new marriage.
Or when our friends form a band and start touring across the state, we try to make it to some of their shows. Even when it means that sometimes we’ll be in small rural gymnasiums an hour or so away from home, and every seat is taken, so we stay at the wall where there is standing room only.
When our friends are seriously ill, we go to the hospital and visit them, hold their hands and sit quietly or leave flowers while they sleep and pray.
Some of us might do the bulk of our shopping online, but there are still many who shop at crowded stores during the holidays and try to ensure we get exactly the right presents. We seem to enjoy telling everyone about the big crowds and how long we waited in traffic too, don’t we?
We do all this and more–maybe not even just for friends, but for people we don’t even know.
This reminds me, though. We have a friend who is amazing–He’s always there for us, and He would be anywhere with us at any time, no matter what.
Jesus is also greatly moved by our faith…and the faith of our friends.
When it’s truly worth it to press through the crowd…
Did you ever think about how there was often a huge crowd around Jesus when He walked this Earth? The Bible doesn’t tell us about every person Jesus healed or about every miracle He performed, but we do get to know about some of the biggest milestones in the history of faith. We can learn from it and let our faith be strengthened.
One of the first miracles Jesus performed as He began ministering to people was especially momentous.
At Luke 5:17-26, we see that Jesus was teaching at a house filled with people from Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem.
There were so many people. We can easily imagine everyone was so enthralled with what He was saying and doing.
A paralyzed man traveled with his friends to see Jesus and receive healing, but due to the size of the crowd at the door, he could not get in.
Rather than turn around and go home when his companions were met with inconvenience, his friends figured out how to get their friend up onto the roof. Then they lowered him down through the ceiling tiles.
How many of our own friends would do such a thing in this day for us, or us for them? Most of us would have stopped at the door and then said to our friends that we could wait or try again another day. I don’t know that we would have thought to climb the roof and lower our friend right down to Jesus.
Luke says that when Jesus saw the faith of the man and his friends, He automatically forgave the paralyzed man. There is an account in the book of Mark as well, in chapter 2, verses 4-5. Luke 5:17-20 is memorable and personal too. In both accounts, as soon as Jesus sees the man has been lowered down to Him from outside the house, and recognizes their great faith, He either calls the man “Friend,” “Son,” or similar terms…and then says: “...your sins are forgiven….”
First, think of how touching it would be for Jesus not only to heal us, but to address us?
The Pharisees freaked out, trying to guess how Jesus could do this. They accused him of blasphemy and failed to recognize the truth before their eyes. But those who believed what they heard and saw shared the good news.
This miraculous moment became the first moment in history when Jesus not only performed a miracle while preaching the good news…He made it clear that He was our friend, the Messiah, the Wise Counselor, the One who God had sent to save us all!
Jesus could have used anything else that day to show the Pharisees He had the power to forgive sins and heal. But the faith of the men who brought their friend moved Him.
What if the man’s friends had seen the full house and chosen to turn around and go home? To try again later?
What if the man had second thoughts about whether or not he belonged in the room?
When there is standing room only…
Sometimes we quit too soon.
Sometimes…friendships fall away when life gets hard, or our friends don’t show up for us the way we have been showing up for them.
We stop keeping our eyes on Jesus and start to see things through a human perspective that magnifies difficulties instead of the truth.
We see a crowded venue, an illness, a weakness…
We don’t always lean into the way God is making for us with the same intensity we use our energy to do the other things we do in life.
The truth is, though, that even when we take our eyes off Jesus, He is still right there. Our focus has changed, but He has not.
We can go right back to Him and place our trust in Him once more.
We are not alone: “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 3:16)
We can ask for wisdom: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5)
He is our strength when we feel weak: “My flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:26)
Whatever our “standing room only” event is–an ICU room, a crowded church, an interview with a board of directors–may we pause, pray, and keep our focus on who God is and who He says we are. What He has done for us and has been doing all along.
May we remember His good works and let the words of our mouth praise Him, and speak the truth of the situation through a perspective of His love. When He wants to give you something, God is faithful to do so. We can be faithful too, and go where we each need to be at the time.
We do a lot for our friends…and Jesus does so much more for all of us. He will always show up, even when there is standing room only.
Reflection
Think of a time when you felt difficulty with resisting the urge to be overwhelmed by the crowd or concerns pressing in around you.
Then imagine yourself in a different situation standing boldly with belief and great faith, waiting for what is about to be released over and through you. Picture Jesus standing there with you, even if there is no room for anyone or anything else.
Consider writing in a journal or in a notes app about what you see and feel. Are you filled with the confidence of faith in God? Are you showing up with the “Here I am!” of Abraham? What do you picture yourself doing differently the next time, and what scriptures might you remind yourself of in those moments?
Prayer
Life can be hard sometimes. Let’s pray:
“Thank you, Father, for the love and light you have given us to share. Thank you for never giving up on us, and for showing us what it means to be a good friend. Thank you for being our friend, in good times and bad. Please remind me of your character when I might waver in courage or faith, and show me how best to be more like You in those moments. Help me to do all things connected to this in Your will and ways. In the name of Jesus, amen.”
Closing Thoughts
If you liked this blog post and found it encouraging, you’ll like the post Choose Your Friends Wisely. It’s all about overcoming insecurity by loving yourself as God loves you, and choosing friendships that reflect this love as well.
