holding too tightly

Jesus Heals Two Demon-Possessed Men

28 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes,s two men who were possessed by demons met him. They lived in a cemetery and were so violent that no one could go through that area.
29 They began screaming at him, "Why are you interfering with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before God's appointed time?"
30 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding in the distance.31 So the demons begged, "If you cast us out, send us into that herd of pigs."
32 "All right, go!" Jesus commanded them. So the demons came out of the men and entered the pigs, and the whole herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned in the water.
33 The herdsmen fled to the nearby town, telling everyone what happened to the demon-possessed men.34 Then the entire town came out to meet Jesus, but they begged him to go away and leave them alone.

matthew 8

found an awesome take on this on another blogger's site so i thought i'd share it here!

Matthew 8 is filled with miracles and healing: a man with leprosy, the faith of the centurion, Peter's mother-in-law, many demon-possessed people, and the calming of a storm. This was all well and good for the people, but in their minds the greatest test for Jesus was still to come.

At the tombs outside of the city, two demon-possessed men lived. They were so violent that no one could pass by them. The people were scared of the men...but the demons were more scared of Jesus. Before He even approached them, they started to argue and beg for Him to cast them into a nearby pigpen instead. Jesus agrees, and sends them into the pigs next door. They immediately ran into a lake and drowned every single one. Kind of an odd ending, if you ask me, but still incredible anyway. Jesus not only delivered the men, but the demons made them so angry that they drowned themselves just to be released and away from the Son of God. You would have thought that the people would fall all over themselves to just follow Jesus and be a part of that, right?

Nope...actually, they asked Him to leave town...immediately.

Wait a second...they asked Jesus, the Son of God, after all these miracles, to leave?

Yep.

Why?

They couldn't get past the loss of the pigs. Now, I understand in that time, being a livestock owner was part of everyday life, and the we don't know if the pigs belonged to just one man, or if it was kind of community pigpen where they all kept their piggies for eating or for sale. What we do know is that when those pigs took the dive into the lake and never came back out, everything changed. This Jesus that performed those many miracles now had touched them personally...and it cost them something. This miracle wasn't fun for them, and it affected their pocketbooks. Instead of understanding the cost of following Jesus, they begged Him to leave before He cost them anything else.

You know, we aren't that much different today. We all love to hear stories of miracles and healing and of great things going on, but when God asks for our talents, finances, and our time, we're quick to shut Him out and ask Him to leave us alone. We want to keep God at arm's length: close enough to call when we need help, but far enough that we don't have to invest anything in the relationship. That's not how it works. A relationship with God is just like any other...it involves time spent with Him and in His Word, talking and listening, and a commitment to stand with Him no matter the cost.

I know I'm holding on to some of my "piggies" a little too tightly, hoping that since I'm giving Him most of me, He won't ask for those things I treasure. Problem is, those are the "piggies" He wants the most, because that's where my heart is.

Here's hoping I can lose a little "pork" for Him today.

from Rob's Random Ramblings