Scripture reading: John 5:1-15, NKJV

Sometimes in difficult deliveries, a baby’s head is born, but the shoulders become lodged behind the mother’s pubic bone. It’s an obstetric emergency called shoulder dystocia. In that moment, every second matters. The longer the baby stays stuck, the worse the outcome. It can feel like hell – frantic, helpless, and desperate.

Being stuck is never easy.

In John 5, we read about a man who had been “stuck” for thirty-eight years — lying beside a pool said to have healing powers, but he could never make it in. Every time the water stirred, someone else got there first. He had no one to help him.

Then one day, Jesus shows up and asks him, “Do you want to be healed?” Instead of a clear yes, the man gives excuses.

Maybe you know what that’s like. Perhaps you’ve been stuck in sin, in sickness, in cycles of frustration and mediocrity. Maybe, like the man, your mind has grown weary, your hope paralysed. But today, grace stands before you and asks, “Do you want to be made whole?”

Then comes the call: “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” And immediately, the man was healed.

Friend, it’s your turn. Grace is here – for your healing, your salvation, your breakthrough. All it takes is surrender. Lay down your excuses. Hand over your helplessness. He is sufficient – He is all the help you need.

And just like in that delivery room, the first thing to do when a baby is stuck… is to call for help. Oh, what a friend we have in Jesus — a very present help in time of need.

Let’s pray

Lord Jesus, I come to You just as I am — tired, stuck, and hopeless.
Like the man by the pool, I’ve waited, I’ve watched, and I’ve withered. Too long I have depended on others or on my own strength. Too long I’ve believed that healing was for someone else, that breakthrough had passed me by.

But today, You stand before me. You ask, “Do you want to be made whole?” Yes, Lord. I do.

I surrender my excuses. Lift me from this place of paralysis — in my heart, in my mind, in my spirit.

Speak Your word again: “Rise up and walk.” I receive Your grace — grace to walk, grace to believe, grace to become all You created me to be.

Thank you for Your salvation, Your healing and Your deliverance, in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Reflections