The Story I'll Tell: What the Woman in Mark 5 Taught Me About Healing, Hope, and the Power of Testimony

Scriptures Referenced: Mark 5:21–34; Luke 8:40–48

I sat in a wide circle with women of all ages. Each of us had our Bibles resting on our laps, with our study sheets layered precariously on top. The group of us gathered in that church basement weekly. Everyone with the same purpose— to grow in faith through a deeper study of God’s word. Our leader had just dropped a doozy of a question and the silence hung thick while she waited for an answer. Apprehension with clear eye avoidance mounted as the seconds ticked by. Papers shuffled. There was a low hum of voices from another circle nearby.

I felt a stirring deep in my soul but kept quiet, hoping another would share.

Someone cleared their throat, but no words came out. The silence had turned painfully awkward. I peeked at my answer on the page. It felt too vulnerable and too wonderful at the same time.

What if I stumble over my words? What if what I wrote isn’t the answer they are looking for? Or worse, heaven forbid I start crying while I’m talking? What would they think of me? Maybe it’s too much.

Our leader sat patiently, willing someone to respond to the question that begged an answer from each of us.

Then I heard the quiet gentle voice, “Tell them. Tell them what I did in you. Share our story… There’s someone here who needs to hear it.”   

A Story of Healing and Hope That Needed to Be Told

Jesus and His disciples were on the way to heal Jairus’s daughter. A large crowd surrounded them. They shuffled shoulder to shoulder, elbows jabbed, heels stepped on one another. Everyone wanted to witness a miracle but were less concerned with knowing the Miracle Maker.

Hidden within the crowd was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. She shouldn’t have been there as Jewish religious custom would have deemed her unclean. She was known by many in this crowd as she had once lived among them, that is, until the bleeding started. She was just a girl back then. She had assumed (just like every other woman), after a few days of limitations, she would be able to wash and re-enter society. But weeks turned to years as she exhausted every option available to her— medically, holistically, and financially. When no cure was found, her world became increasingly isolated as being around others became complicated and restricted. The feeling of loneliness coupled with her physical ailments left her feeling lifeless. Her outcome was bleak as she was deteriorating.

She got word the “Healer” was in town, maybe from another sick outcast, or perhaps from a hopeful family member. She had waited before dawn to hide amongst the welcoming crowd. Suddenly, she saw the disciples and clawed through the bodies. Those next to her reeled back recognizing who she was, trying not to get her “unclean” on them. She lunged forward, pushing, and tripping until she suddenly looked up from the ground to realize the cloak right in front of her was His.

She closed her eyes and stretched her pale hand through the dusty air. Her dusky fingertips ever so slightly grazed the frayed hem of His garment.

She closed her eyes.

Heaven stood still.

”Who touched me?” The disciples exchanged frustrated glances while getting jockeyed about. They scoffed, “There are a million people here. Bumping into you, stepping on you, sweating on you. Did you really just say, 'who touched me?' Can we please carry on for the sake of that sick child?” But He wouldn’t move a muscle until there was an answer. The answer: He already knew. He was making space for the story that needed to be told.

The woman laid as still as a pin on the ground as she felt foreign sensations coming from her body. The blood had dried up. Air easily filled her lungs. Her muscles and joints weak from exhaustion had new vigor. Her disorienting dizziness had cleared.

She shook her head marveling at her new body when she heard His insistent voice. The truth of who He was had hit her like a ton of bricks. She couldn’t go unnoticed by the All Sovereign, All Knowing Lord. Fear caused her to tremble violently as she pulled herself up off the ground. She hesitantly looked at His face and fell in awe at His feet. Would the Son of God be angry with her?

“Who touched me?”

Silence hung in the air as heaven and the crowd waited on a testimony. With a shaking voice, she admitted the truth.

Twelve years of unanswered questions and depleted finances.

Twelve years of exhaustion and worrying.

Twelve years of hopelessness and desperation.

Twelve years starved for affection, frustrated.

Her body was in a perilous decline.

Jesus was her only hope.

So, she risked everything hiding in the center of that mob. It was true, SHE had touched Him. But an indisputable miracle had happened, and it was evident to all around her. As she poured out her soul, He observed the crowd and waited for the ripple effect of faith to occur.

Once her words trailed off, He addressed her with love and a sense of pride. He called her daughter… Not unclean, not diseased or desperate…not the evidence of His miracle… Daughter.

She. Was. His.

He released her to go in peace. Not only were her body and her place in society restored, but her heart was restored as well.

In the presence of all the people He made space for her story. The testimony was not just for Him; it was for them. And it was her testimony to His glory that inevitably opened the eyes and hearts of many in the crowd.

When Her Story Became Mine

I raised my shaking hand.

“I will share.”

My leader smiled and nodded, encouraging me to continue.

I told my new circle of friends, the Holy Spirit had revealed my own story was a modern reflection of this one.

The ripple effect of her faith traveled centuries and had reached my hardened heart.

I had suffered a decade of bleeding and infertility which left behind shame, isolation, strained relationships, and heartache. I exhausted all my financial, holistic, and medical options in search of healing. Four miscarriages had left me with a sense of suffering that felt unsurvivable.

My body was broken, but of deeper concern, my soul was slowly depleting as I tried to live on my own strength.

I couldn’t do it anymore.

In desperation, I shut my eyes and stretched out my hand to Jesus, my only hope.

Chains broke.

Healing and hope began to trickle into my life.

He taught me to trust Him again. In partnering with Him in my suffering, I experienced the presence and power of the resurrected Christ.

He’s asked me to tell my story and to continue telling it. Not because it was perfect, not because I had all the answers. But because He met me in it. He healed me, He freed me, He restored me.

His story.

Our story.

I. Am. His.

Going forth In His Peace,

Heather

Questions for Reflection

Have you been in a season of waiting for healing that you have begun to wonder whether anything will change? What has it cost you? What has this done to your faith?

What would it look like to reach for Jesus not because what He could do for you but because He is worth reaching for?

We all have a story to testify of His glory. How is He making room for you to start telling it today?

Prayer

Father-

You are the Great Healer, Miracle Maker, Restorer, and Friend. You are the God who sees. You know where my faith and hope have run thin. Forgive me when I look to worldly things rather than You as an answer. Help me stretch out my hand to touch your garment, when I have lost all hope. Help me fix my eyes on Jesus the Author and Finisher of my faith. Thank you for the pricey gift of freedom willingly given by your Son. Father, strengthen my resolve. Give me courage to tell our story.

In King Jesus’s powerful name-

Amen

Heather LaVigne

Heather LaVigne is a Christ follower, wife, and mother through a little bit of science and a whole lot of Jesus. She is the author of Barren: A Shared Journey of Infertility, Loss, and Faith released from Abundance books March 2026. Heather is a Nurse Practitioner with 15 years of practice before becoming an author, teacher, and ministry partner. With a deep love for scripture, it is her honor to walk alongside women in any stage of life, particularly those involving grief and loss.  She is an advocate for those suffering through infertility, pregnancy, and child loss. She lives in Comstock Park, MI with her husband, three children, two cats and rambunctious Labrador. 

You can follow Heather on Instagram and Youtube. You can listen to her share more of her story on the She is His Podcast right here!