What is Your Issue of Blood (IOB)?
- Michele Miller
- Apr 8
- 5 min read
Note: This blog is an adaptation of a sermon I preached via Zoom at the September 2021 Little Black Dress Event hosted by the Women’s Ministry of Grace Through Faith Community Church. It is based on Luke 8:40-48; the story of the woman with the issue of blood and how the Lord used it to describe part of my grief journey and the solution to get through it. I caution you that this blog is very descriptive, raw and graphic.
Please read the scriptures below to understand the story, the laws regarding being unclean and the consequences of being unclean.
SIDE NOTE: The meaning of 12, which is considered a perfect number, is that it symbolizes God's power and authority, as well as serving as a perfect governmental foundation. It can also symbolize completeness or the nation of Israel as a whole. Jesus was 12 when documented his first words, 12 tribes of Israel, 12 disciples, 12 gates in New Jerusalem.
Leviticus 15:19-33 CSB – unclean – mentioned 18 times in this version, 22 times in KJV.
CONSEQUENCES OF UNCLEANNESS – Leviticus 15:31-33
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Let’s talk about menstruation also known as your period, monthlies, the curse, time of the month, Flo, the Red Sea, OTR (on the rag). We all know what it is or should – Just so that we are on the same page, below is the medical definition from the US National Library of Medicine:
Menstruation, or period, is normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a woman's monthly cycle. Every month, your body prepares for pregnancy. If no pregnancy occurs, the uterus, or womb, sheds its lining. The menstrual blood is partly blood and partly tissue from inside the uterus. It passes out of the body through the vagina.
When you hear any of these terms that I listed for menstruation what do you think of? What are the symptoms or effects of it?
Cramps, leg pains, lower back pain, sore breasts, fatigue, bloating, lethargic, cranky, irritable, mood swings, nauseated, weak, food cravings, leaks, messed up clothes, sheets, underwear, stench, limitations on what you wear, what you do, where you go, iron deficiency, hair loss, fogginess/hard to focus, headaches, disappointment if trying to get pregnant. Not to mention the impact and/or inconvenience to others around you. Personally I experienced many of these things described for most of my adult life.
Now think about the woman with the issue of blood. It wasn’t just her bleeding, but all the things I listed that were affecting her everyday life. Unclean, unclean, unclean for 12 long years with no help in sight. BUT SHE HEARD ABOUT JESUS and took a chance, risked her life because she heard about the miracles He performed. She said if I can just touch the hem of His garment. Why the hem? Because she was too weak to stand up straight and tap His shoulder. Because she didn’t want to be seen or make a scene. I assume she was sick and tired of being sick and tired.
So, my question for you today is, “What is your issue of blood?” What is it that’s giving you stomach cramps, leg pains, lower back pain, sore breasts, fatigue, food cravings, mood swings, bloating; making you lethargic, cranky, irritable, nauseated, weak; putting limitations on what you wear, what you do, where you go; creating iron deficiency, hair loss, fogginess/hard to focus, headaches? Mental challenges can impact us physically.
Is your issue of blood? (IOB) – a wayward child, unsaved loved one, sick loved one, your job, crazy boss or coworkers, relationships that are not right, marriage, divorce, singleness, finances, fighting the call on your life or just trying to figure it out, loneliness, isolation, fear…. right now (September 2021), my IOB is grief.
It hasn’t been twelve years, but these last 16 months I have felt pain and so many emotions that it doesn’t feel like it will ever end or get better. Grief bites. Eating well one minute, then eating any and everything the next. Going and doing so I don’t have to stop and dwell on it. Mood swings, irritable, lethargic, limitations on what I wear and what I do and where I go, hard to focus. Crying and not crying. Suppressing the tears, the pain. Acting like an actress on a stage. Asking God for comfort but expecting the comfort to be the removal of the grief. Not wanting to go through the healing process (the 12 long years represents the process) because it’s too painful. It’s like physical therapy. It’s supposed to help but it hurts.
The woman with the issue of blood at some point became laser focused on getting to Jesus. Otherwise, she would not have risked her life coming into contact with others (the crowd was pushing against Jesus). She had enough. She didn’t care that he was on his way to help someone else. Ladies, there is enough Jesus to go around. He is the comforter, healer, deliverer, prince of peace, wonderful counselor. But this doesn’t mean he will always remove the pain, but he will help you walk through it and be there for you and with you.
Look at Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane – His issue of blood was the cross
Jesus asked His Father 3 times to take the cup away from him (dying on the cross), but He did not. He had to endure…on his own. Like Jesus, it is often a journey you must take on your own. Others may have good intentions, but they are sleeping, but like Jesus, you must continue to seek the will of the Father. Many won’t understand and will move on with their lives, but you must continue to press onward to touch the hem of his garment.
Look at Jairus – His issue of blood was his dying daughter.
Jairus’ issue of blood was his dying daughter. (Luke 8:40-56) Those that mourned when she died are the same ones who laughed when Jesus said she was sleeping. Jesus told Jairus not to be afraid, only believe and she will be saved. That was probably the longest walk to get home after hearing his daughter was dead but being told to believe she would be saved.
The bottom line is that we must do the work, press in, and stay focused on Jesus. Whatever your IOB is. He is beckoning to us. He loves us. He is willing and able to heal. It may not be when or how we want it, but he is faithful.
Look at Paul – His issue of blood was the thorn in his side.
Think about the thorn in Paul’s side, a messenger of satan sent to buffet him. (2 Corinthians 12:6-10) He asked the Lord to remove it 3 times but was able to endure and write 2/3 of the New Testament. Why? Because God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.”
Here are some practical steps for soul care that I received from my counselor that helped me get through my IOB.
Be quiet with the pain and stop trying to fix it.
Embrace the pain like Jesus in the garden.
Allow your soul to yield to the pain.
Experience the Comforter in the pain.
How do I do this? Be still weekly with worship music and let your feelings be. I did it last Saturday and it was like a cleansing for my soul. I know it’s just the beginning for me, but I will do the work.
Conclusion:
Whatever your issue of blood (IOB) is, know this:
“God can turn your mess into a message, your test into a testimony, He can turn you from being a victim into a victor, and He can give you great triumph from your trials. He can turn your scars into stars and your pain into a pulpit.” (taken from a You Version Devotional)
Written August 2021
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