It’s not often that I’m up and
waiting at a train station at seven thirty on a Saturday morning, but the
promise of a hot coffee from my favourite cafe made the bite of this Autumn
morning that bit gentler.
Upon turning a corner towards
the Sydney Convention Centre we found ourselves weaving through groups and
walking on our toes with strained necks to find the rest of ours. City-goers
out to enjoy all that Darling Harbour offers must surely have been wondering what
would ever lead such a crowd of women to descend on the Convention Centre. A
friend put it well when she said, “I went to an all-girls high school, but even
I find that to be a lot of women,” as though nothing quite
compares to the sight of two thousand plus women gathered in one auditorium.
We spent the morning meeting
women who have met Jesus, some in the last ten, twenty or thirty years, others
who met Him two thousand years ago, face-to-face. Five is a not an
insignificant number of talks to absorb in only two sessions, yet the gripping
narrative of Luke’s gospel as it was read dramatically and then taught made
each talk all the more weighty and thought-provoking.
As each speaker took us
through stories of women who met Jesus in the book of Luke, what became plain
is that the multitude of blessings that Jesus extended to these women are
extended to us just as freely. We are offered a saviour in Jesus, just as Mary
met her saviour when she raised her son. Just as the woman in Luke 7 was
forgiven by Him and responded with extravagant love, we too can find
forgiveness and should respond to Jesus with the same love. Simple faith in
Jesus is what saw the bleeding woman healed, and Jesus offers us a cure for our
spiritual brokenness if we trust Him.
Morning tea was a little like
mayhem, but getting sidetracked amongst the hundreds of women offered the
opportunity to catch up with a friend I don’t often see. After refuelling with
apples, cupcakes and that ever-enticing tea or coffee we shuffled back to our
seats for the last of the talks. These canvassed Martha and Mary, and the women
who met the resurrected Jesus, who show just how dependent we’re to be on Jesus
rather than expecting Him to need anything from us, and that knowledge of the
resurrected Jesus should prompt worship, great joy and praise.
What seemed like it would be a
lengthy lunch break flew past as we soaked up the sun. After heading into our
final session, the elective “Following Jesus,” we were met with an encouraging
stream of stories from women who have met Jesus and are daily learning what it
looks like to follow Him.
As I left the building, my
body felt tired but my mind was refreshed. The day full of women bearing
witness to Jesus was a testament to Him and the blessing of salvation He offers
to those who meet and receive Him.
