Interruption: Inconvenience or Opportunity

Have you ever been busy doing something you considered important when someone interrupted you?

Maybe you were working in the kitchen, sitting at your desk, trying to finish a project, watching your favorite television program, or enjoying an important game. Then your child, perhaps a preschooler, walks over, gets right in your face, and asks a question that seems completely unimportant at that moment.

How do we respond?

“Not now.”

“Later.”

“Can't you see I'm busy?”

Most of us have experienced moments like that. Sometimes an interruption is simply an interruption. It disrupts our plans, changes our schedule, and pulls our attention away from what we were doing.

But what if some of the interruptions we experience are actually opportunities?

Our lives are full of interruptions. They can irritate us because they disturb our routines and distract us from our priorities. Yet the Bible gives us a powerful example of an interruption that became an opportunity.

It is found in Luke 8:43–48, in the story of a woman who had suffered from an issue of blood for twelve years. She interrupted Jesus—but Jesus did not treat her as an inconvenience. He recognized the moment as an opportunity.

Jesus had been traveling throughout the region, healing people and casting out demons. When He returned, a crowd was waiting for Him.

Among those who approached Jesus was a man named Jairus, a synagogue official. Jairus fell at Jesus' feet and begged Him to come to his house because his only daughter, about twelve years old, was dying.

There was urgency in Jairus' request. This was not something that could simply be put off until later.

So Jesus went with him.

But as Jesus traveled through the crowd, something happened!

A woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind Him. She had spent all she had seeking help from doctors, yet instead of getting better, her condition had become worse. She was desperate. Jesus appeared to be her last and only hope.

She made her way through the crowd until she was close enough to reach out and touch the fringe of Jesus' cloak.

And the moment she touched Him, she was healed!

That touch was not accidental. She had reached out in faith.

Jesus Stopped...

The crowd was pressing in around Jesus. Many people were touching Him. Yet Jesus stopped and asked, “Who is the one who touched Me?”

Peter essentially responded, “Lord, there are people everywhere. The crowd is pressing against You. What do You mean, ‘Who touched Me?’”

But Jesus knew that this was different...

This was not merely a random touch caused by being in a crowd. Someone had deliberately reached out to Him in faith.

Jesus said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.”

The woman realized she had been discovered. Trembling, she fell before Jesus and explained why she had touched Him and how she had been immediately healed.

What happened next is one of the most beautiful parts of the story.

Jesus did not become angry.

He did not become irritated.

He did not tell her that she had interrupted Him.

Instead, He said:

“Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

Imagine what those words must have meant to her.

For twelve years she had suffered. For twelve years she had lived with pain, uncertainty, and disappointment. She had spent her money searching for an answer. Now, in a single encounter with Jesus, her suffering was over.

But her healing was about more than her physical condition.

Jesus called her “Daughter.”

He recognized her.

He affirmed her.

He restored her.

The moment that looked like an interruption became a moment of healing, restoration, and peace.

But What About Jairus?

There is another side to the story.

While Jesus was stopping to talk with this woman, Jairus was waiting.

Remember, Jairus' daughter was dying.

From a human perspective, this interruption could have seemed terribly inconvenient. Jairus had an urgent need. His daughter needed help immediately. The woman had already suffered for twelve years.

Couldn't she wait a little longer?

Word comes to Jairus that his daughter had died!

What if Jesus had not stopped?

Would He have arrived at Jairus' house in time?

But Jesus knew something Jairus did not yet understand.

The interruption did not prevent Jesus from accomplishing His purpose.

While Jesus was helping one person, He was still moving toward another.

When Jesus heard the news of what seemed to be the death of Jairus' daughter, He responded “Do not be afraid any longer; only believe, and she will be made well.”

Then Jesus went to Jairus' house and healed his daughter.

The interruption did not stop Jesus.

It became part of what Jesus was doing.

That ought to make us look differently at the interruptions in our own lives.

Every day we encounter interruptions.

The phone rings.

Someone comes to the door.

Someone asks for our help.

Someone wants to talk.

Someone needs our attention when we already have a dozen things demanding it.

Our first response can easily be irritation.

“I'm busy.”

“I don't have time.”

“Why now?”

But perhaps we should stop and ask a different question:

Is this interruption an inconvenience—or an opportunity?

Sometimes the person interrupting your day may be hurting.

They may be desperate.

They may not know where else to turn.

They may need encouragement.

They may need someone to listen.

They may need prayer.

They may need practical help.

They may simply need to know somebody cares.

To you, it may look like an interruption.

To them, it may be a desperate cry for help.

That changes everything.

Why did this woman reach out to Jesus?

Most likely, she had heard about Him. She knew there was something different about Him. She recognized Him as someone special, perhaps even as the Messiah.

And why might someone reach out to you?

Perhaps because they see something different in you.

Perhaps they know you have faith.

Perhaps they recognize that you have something they need.

Perhaps, without even realizing it, they see Jesus in you.

When someone reaches out to you in a moment of pain, before becoming annoyed, ask yourself:

Why are they reaching out to me?

Why are they trying to contact me?

Why did they choose me?

Could it be that God has placed you in their path for this very moment?

We may not be a random choice or an accidental encounter. A person who is hurting may see hope in us because they see something of Christ in us.

That means we should not always resent the interruption.

Sometimes we should be honored by it.

Because in that moment, we may be representing Jesus.

The woman in Luke 8 also reminds us that not everyone who is hurting will make their pain obvious.

Some people cry out.

Others scream silently

Some demand attention.

Others suffer quietly.

Some will tell you exactly what is wrong.

Others may never say a word.

There are people all around us who are silently yelling “Help me.”

But because they do not scream loudly enough, we may never hear them.

They suffer in silence.

They suffer in solitude.

They hope someone notices.

The woman in this story did not march directly up to Jesus and loudly demand His attention. She slipped through the crowd, almost unnoticed. She reached for Him quietly.

And Jesus noticed.

While everyone else saw a crowd, Jesus saw a hurting woman.

Perhaps that is one of the great challenges for us today.

We are surrounded by people, but we can still miss the person who is hurting.

We can become so focused on our schedules, responsibilities, and agendas that we fail to notice the person quietly reaching out.

What would happen if we slowed down long enough to notice?

What would happen if we stopped and turned around?

What would happen if we looked beyond the interruption and saw the person behind it?

There are hurting people all around us.

Some need encouragement.

Some need someone to listen.

Some need prayer.

Some need help.

Some need forgiveness.

Some simply need to know that somebody cares.

Every interruption gives us a choice.

We can become irritated by it.

Or we can see it as an opportunity.

An opportunity to bring hope.

An opportunity to bring encouragement.

An opportunity to offer prayer.

An opportunity to show compassion.

An opportunity to point someone toward God.

The interruption may even become an opportunity to witness.

Jesus did not merely heal the woman and send her away unnoticed. He stopped. He brought her into the open. He allowed her story to be heard. He affirmed her faith.

“Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

Sometimes people need us to do more than solve a problem. They need us to remind them that they matter.

They need reassurance.

They need someone to tell them not to give up.

They need to hear that faith can sustain them through difficult moments.

We can bring hope, compassion, prayer, encouragement, and the love of Christ into their lives.

Our interruptions can become ministry opportunities.

What Will You Do With Your Next Interruption?

The next time your plans are interrupted, stop before you react.

Listen.

Look.

Ask yourself what may really be happening.

Maybe the interruption is not about your schedule at all.

Maybe it is about someone else's need.

Maybe it is a person who has been suffering quietly.

Maybe it is someone who has run out of options.

Maybe it is someone who needs encouragement.

Maybe it is someone searching for hope.

Maybe God has placed that person in your path because you have an opportunity to reflect Christ.

The woman in Luke 8 came to Jesus because she believed there was healing in Him.

People may come to us because they believe there is something different about our lives.

What will they find?

I hope they find compassion.

I hope they find patience.

I hope they find someone willing to stop and listen.

And most of all, I hope they see Jesus.

Pray for the Interruptions

Instead of praying only for God to make our lives easier and our schedules smoother, perhaps we should also pray for opportunities to serve Him in the middle of the interruptions.

Pray:

“Lord, give me an opportunity to witness.”

Then watch what happens.

Someone starts talking to you about a problem.

Someone calls when you are busy.

Someone needs help when you already have plans.

Someone unexpectedly crosses your path.

And suddenly, there is your opportunity.

The woman in Luke 8 was desperate. She was sick. She was afraid. She had tried everything. Her only hope was Jesus.

What looked like an interruption was actually her reaching out for help.

And the interruption became a moment of healing.

The same may be true for us.

What looks like an interruption in our lives may be someone else's cry for help.

So the next time your schedule is disrupted, pause before saying, “Not now.”

Look again.

Listen again.

That interruption may be an opportunity God has placed directly in front of you.

Pray for those interruptions. Watch for those interruptions.

For what appears to be an inconvenience may actually be an opportunity to be used by God.