When Mark places Jesus’ healing of the man with the unclean spirit in the very first chapter of Mark, he is emphasizing God’s power to heal and make new, and God’s desire for us to know wholeness of spirit. He is also emphasizing how the Kingdom of God comes near to oppose the forces of evil in the world. We too, then, have a role to play in casting out evil. We can join in God’s work of healing the world as the things we care about deeply lead us to share our unique gifts and abilities in ways that make a difference in the quality of life for others.
We long for God’s liberating touch in our own lives.
We long for what really satisfies the human heart.
And just so, God longs for and intends wholeness for us.
Perhaps the last verse of the song to which I referred earlier, can be our prayer:
Silence, Christ, the unclean spirit, in our mind and in our heart.
Speak your word that when we hear it all our demons shall depart.
Clear our thought and calm our feeling, still the fractured, warring soul.
By the power of your healing make us faithful, true, and whole.
