Not Another Miracle, Please!

It’s been one thing after the other

This past week has been too much. First, there was that news from home.

I feel terrible! I should not have left home. My brother arrived this morning to tell me our grandmother got sick and unexpectedly passed away. That was a week ago! If I had known she was sick, I could’ve asked Jesus to do something, but I didn’t know.

I feel so guilty. I am the oldest. I should be there to help my parents. They are getting on in years. Grandma would’ve been buried the day after she died, and my parents would be saying the Kaddish for a year.

And there is Shiva.

So many people would come, and our home is small. I hope my sister can handle this. The whole experience would’ve been so stressful. It’s the first death in our family.

And what about my grandfather? Where is he going to live? He’s not well, either. My head is spinning. I’m going to talk to James the Lesser and ask for advice.

We were going to Capernaum, and I told my brother to come with us while I decided what to do. Jesus wanted to teach on the Sabbath in the synagogue there. I couldn’t wait to hear Jesus, but there was a man possessed by a demon. And he was yelling that Jesus should leave them alone.

“Them?” What did he mean? Were there other people around possessed by demons?

But while I was still thinking about this, the man yelled:

“I know who you are — the Holy One of God!”

It was so quiet I could hear the people around me breathe. Did this demon recognize Jesus as the Messiah, whereas I had doubts? I pulled my head into my cloak, trying to make like a turtle. I didn’t want Jesus to look at me, yet I knew he knew where I sat.

Then, in a firm voice, Jesus said:

“Be quiet! Come out of him!”

And what do you know but that unclean spirit convulsed the man, threw him about, and left. The poor man sat up, shook his head, and looked around at everyone staring. I don’t think he knew what had happened. Did he even know he had been possessed?

Jesus was staying with Simon and Andrew and left the synagogue for the night. I lagged behind, thinking about what had happened and wondering if I should go home. But what could I do at home? Nothing! Now, if Jesus had been around, maybe he could’ve saved my grandmother.

As I thought, he turned around and looked at me. I shriveled and gave a sickly smile — one of those where you pull your lips away from your teeth, but your heart is elsewhere. He smiled in return, a real smile, turned back to Simon and Andrew, and continued.

I quickly changed my thoughts. Jesus could not maybe have saved my grandmother; he would’ve saved her.

There. I felt much better.

We arrived at Simon and Andrew’s house, and Jesus and his apostles went inside. We stayed outside and talked, discussing where we would spend the night. I wondered whether there was an inn in Capernaum, but James the Lesser said that would be a waste of money on a fine night.

No, we’d find a sheltered spot and study the stars. Judas Iscariot was quick to agree that we should not spend any money. There was something about that fellow I honestly didn’t like. I don’t know what, but he reminded me of an eel. Slimy and slippery.

Then Andrew came out of the house and told us Simon’s mother-in-law was sick with a severe fever. I didn’t like the sound of that. A fever can mean anything! According to my brother, that’s how our grandmother died.

But Jesus went up to the old lady, took her hand, and told the fever to leave — and it did! She got up and served Jesus and those with him.

I didn’t dare give an opinion. What would I say? One moment, she’s deathly ill with a severe fever, and the next moment, she’s walking around serving.

It made no sense.

While deciding on where to sleep, walking around, and checking out the best places, the sun dipped behind the last grey clouds. It was a gorgeous sunset, all orange and fiery reds, skimming the horizon, announcing the end of the day.

And, like locusts descending on a field, the people appeared out of nowhere. They brought those who were sick from a disease, injured, or born with malformed limbs. And yes, they’d heard what had happened in the synagogue, so they brought the demon-possessed as well.

All of this in one day!

James, my brother, and I wrapped our cloaks around us and settled in for the night. My brother could not lie still, and after a while, I asked him what was on his conscience.

“I want to stay with you,” he whispered. “I want to follow Jesus as well.”

My heart sank. It was not possible. One of us had to be home with our parents. I turned to him and said — “Your turn will come, but for now, with me away, you are the eldest and must take care of everything and everyone at home. That is a very important job.”

We argued a little, but then he agreed. I was worried about money, but he told me he had a good job working on the neighbor’s farm, and our sister took care of an old woman in the village. My small carpenter shop would be closed until I got back, but people were still asking about me and buying up the many small carvings I had left behind.

It was a quiet night. All of us were tired. So much is happening, and where and when will it end? And how?

My brother was leaving early, long before daylight, to beat the heat of the day. I wanted to walk a little way with him. I was surprised to see Jesus leaving the house as well. So early?

He smiled and said, “ Give my greetings to your parents. Don’t worry about your grandmother — her passing was decreed. And don’t worry about your grandfather — all is as it should be.”

He reached out and placed his hand on my brother’s shoulder. I swear I saw the boy grow tall and strong.

But he didn’t touch me.

My brother went one way, and Jesus went to some solitary place where I knew he would pray. And I?

I went back to the group to find out where we were going next. Maybe I should’ve gone home with my brother.

The Apprentice Apostle.

Sources:

• Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit from a Man in Capernaum Mark 1:21–27 Luke 4:31–36 4.
• Jesus Heals Peter’s Mother-in-Law Sick with Fever Mark 1:29–31 Luke 4:38–39 5.
• Jesus Heals Many Sick and Oppressed at Evening Mark 1:32–34 Luke 4:40–41.