I’m not really sure where this entry will lead, but I just had to share my insights today after reading a familiar scripture. This morning I was lead to John 8 – the story of the woman caught in adultery. I love when we read something over and over in God’s precious Word, and then one day, suddenly, a detail or word just leaps off the page. It captures our attention and embraces our heart.
My eyes filled with tears as I read this familiar story. I imagine that woman standing there – uncomfortable, terrified, ashamed, humiliated, as she was being accused of this “deadly” sin.
Yet my heart melts and fills and overflows when I think of Jesus, her Knight and Shining armor coming to her rescue. I cheer and clap as imagine that His very presence with this woman made everyone pause and scratch their heads.
"Why her?"
He challenges them and the people scatter. And there our loving Savior kneels to write in the dust. Oh – how I long to know what He wrote that day. He has left it a mystery to us for a reason. But we do know that it was truth and love that covers a multitude of accusations, sins, mistakes and bad choices.
And then my favorite part…it was just the two of them. Jesus and this adulterous woman. We often rush through our scripture reading and view the scene in “real time” – but maybe, just maybe – it was just Jesus and this woman alone for quite some time.
Together. In silence. Yes, when everyone scattered, she was alone in His presence.
I smirk when I imagine what Jesus does next. Our all-knowing Friend asks her a question, as if He doesn’t know the answer. And with all the love in the world, He tells her to go and sin no more.
My eyes fill with tears as I pause and think of the many women standing accused, maybe not of adultery, but of something. And our Savior comes to us, each and every time, writing in the dust…offering us something more.
There is so much we can take away from this. But today I want to stay in one place. When you are between breaths, know that Jesus is writing a message for you in the dust. You may not know what word His fingers are tracing. But you can be confident that it is FOR you. It is truth. It is hope. It is healing. It is grace. And it will set you FREE.
