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Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me’— for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Legion’; for many demons had entered him. They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’ So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him. (Luke 8:26-39)
When something or someone has you shackled, there's not much you can do, either for yourself, for others, or for God. Such was the life of this man. Shackled by demonic possession, he lived naked and among the dead; and living in the graveyard is not living at all. But such were the shackles of those demons, for there were many living in him. But these demons knew Jesus and feared Him. Their encounter with the Lord set the man free from them, and they begged to be sent into another living creature and into a herd of swine they went; and this herd, rather than lived shackled themselves, rushed off the cliff into the lake and drowned. The man found himself clothed, and in his right mind, which freaked out the people that knew him. These, having lost a significant herd, asked Jesus to leave their area, but the man, now free and in his right mind, asked to leave with Jesus. Jesus gave him a task: "Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." And that's what he did.
Oh, how much God has done for us, and we usually do a great job of keeping it to ourselves. The point of the story is the opposite; tell others how much God has done for us, especially how He unshackled us and led us into a new life.
PRAYER: Loving God, may Your grace and comfort be with the people of Orlando, Fl, who are grieving the loss of so many in a senseless act of violence and terror. Be with all who grieve and mourn this day. Be also with those who have been unshackled and have yet to tell another soul of Your great love and power. And this we ask in the Name that scares demons and shackles, Jesus of Nazareth, our Lord and Savior, amen!
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
P.S. Thank you all for your prayers, emails, texts, etc. during the death of my father, Eradio M. Valverde, (Sr.) It was a very difficult time for the entire family and only through God's grace did we get through it. I did his eulogy and also his committal service at graveside, and only through God's grace and your prayers was that possible. Leaving Houston was a most difficult thing, for my Dad loved that city and what it offered to him and us, when we needed it most. I felt a sad loss as we drove away, but our daughter and grandson remain in Houston for the same reason that my Dad arrived there, so we will be back, the Lord willing.
I ask for prayers for Rev. Dean Fleming's mother, who is in the hospital in San Antonio, TX with heart ailments. May God bring healing and comfort to her and her family.
