JUST ANOTHER "BAR"

"Jesus said in reply, 'Be on your way. Your faith has healed you.' " —Mark 10:52

Today and many times throughout our lives, may Jesus say to each of us what He said to the blind beggar, Bartimaeus: "Your faith has healed you."

Like Bartimaeus, may we express our faith by:

crying out audibly and publicly for Jesus to have mercy on us (Mk 10:47),
crying out even louder when pressure is applied to silence us (Mk 10:48),
fearlessly throwing aside our "security blankets," jumping up, and coming to Jesus (Mk 10:50),
accepting Jesus ("Savior") as the Son of David (see Mk 10:47, 48), that is, the Messiah, and as Rabboni, that is, Teacher (Mk 10:51),
admitting our spiritual blindness and asking to be healed (see Mk 10:51),
receiving our sight (Mk 10:52), and
following Jesus as His disciple (Mk 10:52).

Many of us live at a time and a place of lukewarm Christianity (see Rv 3:16). Jesus is saying to us: "Little do you realize how wretched you are, how pitiable and poor, how blind and naked!" (Rv 3:17) If we would but have the faith of Bartimaeus, we would see our blind and blinding culture of death transformed into a civilization of life and love. Be another Bartimaeus.

Prayer: Father, give me the faith to move mountain ranges (see Mk 11:23).

Promise: "Be as eager for milk as newborn babies — pure milk of the Spirit to make you grow unto salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good." —1 Pt 2:2-3

Praise: Week by week, year by year, Frances is transforming her parish by letting herself be transformed by the Spirit.