Fiction Friday! Interview With the Woman With the Issue of Blood – Part 2

Interview with the Woman With the Issue of Blood
Part 1
Account taken from Mark 5:25-34

We are continuing with our interview with Zahava, from the fourth novella, Hopeless, The Woman With The Issue of Blood, in the series, Hidden Faces: Portraits of Nameless Women in the Gospels.

Q – I would like to ask you about your relationship with God during the years of your illness. I pictured you in the novella as having becoming pretty discouraged and cynical. Would you say that is a correct assumption?

A – Absolutely. I tried to stay positive, but after years of failed pregnancies, fruitless trips to doctor after doctor, and isolation, I fell into deep despair. If God truly cared about me and our family, how could this horrible disease go on and on? I would rather have been dead.

Q – Which in fact led to your serious consideration of suicide.

A – Yes. I’m embarrassed to admit it now, but I got to the point where I truly believed it would be better for all concerned – myself and my family – if I were gone, completely out of the picture. Then Gideon could remarry and have a normal family. When Gideon told me the family asked him to move me out of the house, I didn’t know what else to do. They wanted me gone, so why not do away with myself. I am ashamed that I thought it would solve everything, but I was desperate.

Q – It was the enemy who tempted you in order to destroy you.

A – I know that now. He tempted me, then when I gave into the temptation, he continued to torment me with the shame and guilt of it.

Q – That’s how Satan works. He harasses God’s people continually. Fortunately you were not successful in your attempt to do away with yourself. God had a plan for you, and it wasn’t suicide. Suicide is never the answer.

But let’s move on. I loved the character of Hasina. She had such elegance and class, and was a genuine friend to you, yet never stepped out of her role as a servant.

A – She was a God-send. I loved her like a sister. She took care of me without any grumbling or impatience. God sends people alongside us in our lives to minister to us, to encourage us, correct us, but sometimes we don’t treasure those relationships as we should. I’m afraid I took Hasina for granted for a long time.

Q – I’d like to ask you a hypothetical question. What if you had failed to reach Jesus that day? What if you had missed touching his robe by inches? Do you think He still would have healed you?

A – Surprisingly, I have thought about that so much, and I believe He would have. I think He would have honored my effort to reach Him, believing that healing was in reach. The compassion and mercy of Jesus embraces our human failures. He knows our hearts, and honors our feeble faith. I truly believe He would have healed me anyway.

Q – I do too. It’s so like Jesus to do so. Thank you for this interview, Zahava. Thank you for the inspiration the story of your faith has been to women through the years.

A – The pleasure is mine.

Next Friday I am going to have an interview session with all four women to wind up our time together. Do you have questions you’d like me to ask them? Leave them in the comments and we’ll answer them next week.

To read chapter one of ‘Hopeless’ click HERE.

To order your own copy of ‘Hopeless’ click HERE.

If you enjoyed this post, please share it with your friends and subscribe to my blog and newsletter below. You will receive my modern short story version of ‘Trapped: The Adulterous Woman’ in your thank you email.

 

The post Fiction Friday! Interview With the Woman With the Issue of Blood – Part 2 appeared first on Golden Keyes Parsons.