Mark 1:31 so he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.
The “her” here is Simon’s (his name is later changed to Peter) mother-in-law and this is the clincher to one of the earliest healing stories in Mark’s gospel. After church one of the more astute Elders of the congregation remarked in an aside to me, “yeah, he healed her so she could wait on the men!” Did I mention that this Elder was a woman? It is interesting that the comment about waiting on the group is mentioned in the story. I have had jobs I didn’t like and had to drag myself through just to earn a living. Like so many things in our world, the reality of work has been degraded and degrading to the point where we can forget that we were created in the image of a God who by nature is creative and that, according to the Genesis story, work- as in tending the garden- was made to be a good thing. There is nothing like a couple of days with the flu to make one appreciate being able to get back to work, at least for a little while. This reference to waiting on the group is so incidental that it is unreliable to draw any firm conclusion about the mother-in-law’s attitude or what Mark was intending, but I have known people and experienced myself the joy of healing accompanied by the gratitude for renewing meaningful activity. Yes, it doesn’t last long, but maybe it should. Most of us feel a need for some sort of healing in our life- physical, emotional or spiritual. What would you do with your life if that healing came?
Logan Memorial Presbyterian Church 