#5kMay2019 Day 12 (BLOG)

Happy Mother’s Day to all of you #5May2019 Mom’s out there! I hope you had an awesome day, and I hope that your kids both allowed and encouraged you to get your 5k in.

We had a pretty full day in the Polen household. I played electric guitar for both services in the worship team at church, and then we celebrated Mother’s Day at Jodi’s parents’ house over a big, grilled, delicious family meal. I wasn’t able to get my 5k in until after we got home from there.

I ran a nice, quick 5k around Apple Creek in the rain. My legs were feeling much better than yesterday, and I held a 7:47 pace, finishing the 5k in 24 minutes and 8 seconds.

In honor of Mother’s Day, I was amazed today by the faith and fortitude of the Syrophoenician woman in Mark 7.

And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. And he said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” And he said to her, “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

(Mark 7:24–30, ESV)

This story, in my mind at least, beautifully portrays the love of a mother. This woman was willing to travel who knows how far, and find where Jesus was staying, so that her poor little daughter could be healed. She was willing to be brought low, so that her daughter could be lifted up.

Her faith paid off, and her daughter was healed. Praise God!

Thank you to all of the moms out there, who show us better how to selflessly love others well.