Sometime later, after helping the man with the unclean spirit, Jesus crossed back to the other side of the big lake. This time, when he got out of the boat, he was met by a great crowd of people.

A man named Jairus made his way through the crowd to talk to Jesus. Jairus was one of the synagogue rulers. He kept the worship services running smoothly. He was an important man with an even more important request.

“My little girl is almost dead!” Jairus said. He was literally at Jesus’s feet, begging him to do something. “Come,” Jairus pleaded, “lay hands on my daughter that she may live!” So Jesus went with him.

But the crowds were still all around Jesus. It wouldn’t be easy to get to Jairus’s daughter. As Jesus was trying to get through the sea of people, he felt someone bump into him. “Who touched my clothes?” Jesus asked.

This time it was a woman who needed help. There was a woman who had been sick for twelve years. That’s a long time to feel icky, longer than some people have been alive! She had tried all sorts of doctors and spent all her money, but nothing seemed to help. After years of getting sicker instead of better, she believed Jesus could be just what she needed.

When Jesus asked, “Who touched me?” the woman wasn’t sure she wanted to answer. Sick people weren’t supposed to touch healthy people. She thought maybe Jesus would be mad at her. But she knew what she had done. Even though she was afraid, she fell down before Jesus’s feet and told him the truth.

And Jesus wasn’t mad at all. “Daughter,” he said, “your faith is amazing. Go in peace and be healed.”

Now Jesus had to get to Jairus’s daughter—and quickly. But before he got to the house, someone ran to tell Jairus that his little girl was already dead.

For anyone else, that would be the end of the story. Not for Jesus though.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said, “only believe.”

The people inside Jairus’s house laughed at Jesus. They thought he was wasting his time trying to help a dead child. But Jesus knew what he was doing. He took Jairus’s daughter by the hand and said, “Little girl, get up.” And you know what? That’s exactly what she did. She got up and started walking around. Everyone was amazed, and Jesus told them to get her something to eat.

Let’s hope it was as good as ice cream.