Do You Really Want to Get Well?

Today’s reading brought me to John 5, where Jesus encounters a man who had been sick for thirty-eight years. The story unfolds at the pool of Bethesda, a place where people gathered with the hope of being healed. The detail that caught my attention most wasn’t the length of the man’s suffering or even the healing itself—it was the question Jesus asked: “Would you like to get well?” (John 5:6, NLT).

A Question That Sounds Too Obvious

At first, the question seems unnecessary. Why would someone who has been sick for nearly four decades not want to get well? Yet the man’s response is interesting. He doesn’t say “yes.” Instead, he explains why he hasn’t been able to reach the pool in time when the water is stirred. His answer reveals less about his desire and more about the obstacles he sees standing in the way.

Is wanting to be well always as simple as it sounds? Change, whether physical, emotional, or even practical, often comes with challenges. Sometimes the barriers become so central in our thinking that the desire itself gets buried. Maybe the man’s life had become shaped around his condition, to the point where he could only see what was blocking him, not what might be possible beyond it.

Wanting vs. Being Ready

What does it mean to truly want something to change? Most people carry areas of life they wish were different—habits they’d like to break, goals they’ve put off, or hurts they’d prefer to heal from. But wanting change in the abstract can be very different from being ready to step into it. There’s often a cost, whether that’s giving up familiar routines, confronting fears, or redefining an identity that has long been tied to the problem.

I also noticed that Jesus didn’t help the man into the pool, nor did he address the explanation the man gave. Instead, he offered a different path: “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” (John 5:8, NLT). It suggests that sometimes the solution doesn’t come through the channels we expect. The man had been focused on one way of being healed, but the real breakthrough came from somewhere entirely different.

Redefining the Desire to Be Well

This story made me reflect on the ways people can become attached to a single idea of how things must change, while overlooking other possibilities. What if the act of asking, “Do you want to get well?” is less about obvious desire and more about readiness to embrace what healing, growth, or change might demand?

The passage doesn’t go into detail about what the man felt in that moment—only that he picked up his mat and walked. It leaves open the possibility that wanting to be well involves more than longing for relief. It might also mean being willing to let go of familiar limitations, even when they’ve defined life for years.