Scripture Reading: Matthew 12: 22
Then some people brought to Jesus a man who was blind and could not talke because he had a demon. Jesus healed the man, so that he was able to talk and see.
Today is Wednesday, hump day, the middle of the week, three days left until the weekend. We all, even us who are retired, look forward to the day of relaxation (not that we do not have those times in the week), but look forward to maybe that spontaneous trip to somewhere we have never been, an adventure we have never encountered, or a time to read our favorite book without any interruptions. These are all things that we look forward to.
The demons in our lives do not allow us the freedom or the opportunity to think of these things. They cause us to think of the negative things in our lives, blinding us to what we say or see. We forget about hospitality and instead think of how militant we can become in our neighborhoods with the rules and regulations or even laws, using them against our neighbors just to satisfy some sense of superiority we may think we have. We turn our eyes to the homeless, the under-employed, the unemployed, those in need, the needs of our churches, and even the needs of our friends to find satisfaction in the things that we can have – that continual pursuit of self-perpetuating self. The more we have, the better off we are. We must have more than the Jones’ down the street.
Sometimes in our lives, someone brings us to our senses. They bring us to Jesus. Sometimes in our daily routines we forget the Jesus we worship on Sunday. But, someone brings us to Jesus. And the bringing is not to merely see Jesus so that we can say we saw a famous person, a celebrity, and now are satisfied. We are brought to Jesus because we need a specific healing. The demons of neglect, blindness to our surroundings, and sin have removed us quite a distance from the one who sacrificed his life so that we may have life. We distance ourselves through our own pride and selfishness so that we cannot see the Jesus in others around us. It takes someone to bring us to Jesus, just as the people brought the blind and dumb man to Jesus.
The portion of Scripture for today (taken from the TEV version) says that Jesus healed the man so that he could both see and talk. Those two events are important in their separate ways. We must be able to see before talking. We must be able to discern (a form of seeing) what God wants in our lives, live according to the gifts, talents, and abilities that God has given us to use to further the kingdom of God, and separate what is the “us” stuff from the God stuff. Then, we can speak of what God has done in our lives.
Once this occurs, we can see the Jesus in the people around us. Our attitudes shift to be more God-centered than self-centered. Our actions become intentional actions that God has prepared in our hearts, reflecting the intentional actions of an active and living God. This is a life that is provided through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and a life that we live by dying daily to ourselves. We must get rid of the demons that hinder us from proper sight and speech and ask God to lead, guide, direct, and give us compassion for others. One word that describes Jesus when he encounters groups of people is “compassion”.
How can we channel the seeing and the speech that God has given us to “compassion”? Merriam-Webster defines compassion as “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.” That involves us being able to see and talk as God has healed us. It involves us getting rid of those demons that hinder our true worship of God throughout the week. When we get up each morning, not just on Wednesdays, let us consider, reflect, and let God illuminate our lives so that we may be able to truly see and speak of the healing, compassionate nature of God through Jesus Christ.
River Stones 