Tuesday of the 4th week of Lent
Gospel John 5:1-3,5-16
“‘Sir,’ replied the sick man ‘I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is disturbed; and while I am still on the way, someone else gets there before me.’ Jesus said, ‘Get up, pick up your sleeping-mat and walk.’ The man was cured at once, and he picked up his mat and walked away”. Here we can find two important aspects of faith. First of all, we find Jesus appearing before a person who has no one in his life to help him. He was sick for thirty-eight years and no one was in his life to help him. Jesus recognizes this and is appearing before him. This is very consoling for us. Jesus recognizes our helplessness and appears before us. Then there is another important message which the story of this paralyzed person is telling us. He was waiting to be put in the pool for being healed but God had a different plan. This means, we must be open to the plan of God and not to be stuck in our narrow way of thinking. Faith must open up our way of thinking and must not close us in our narrow boxes. There is always a possibility of just picking up the mat and walking way instead of being put into the pool in the first place the water is moved. Let’s reflect: Lent is the time to make our faith open us up to the plans of God and not closed in our plans.
Tuesday 12 March
