(My reflection is at the bottom! Also, this is the short version of the gospel.The full version is on the USCCB website.)
The sisters of Lazarus sent word to Jesus, saying, “Master, the one you love is ill.” When Jesus heard this he said, “This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that he was ill, he remained for two days in the place where he was. Then after this he said to his disciples, "Let us go back to Judea.”
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise.” Martha said, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”
He became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Sir, come and see.” And Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him.” But some of them said, “Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?”So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay across it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, “Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you for hearing me. I know that you always hear me; but because of the crowd here I have said this, that they may believe that you sent me.” And when he had said this, He cried out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, “Untie him and let him go.”
Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what he had done began to believe in him.
This passage leaves me in awe every time I read it. Let's think about this.... This same man who raises men from the dead, loves us and longs to have a relationship with us. That's crazy!!! We should feel so privileged that this all-powerful, amazing God has selected us from billions of people to have a relationship with. He wants us specifically! He wants all of us. Our hopes, our dreams, our joys, and our sorrows. I feel so blessed to be "counted among the flock of those he has chosen."
While reading this familiar Bible story, something other than the miracle of Lazarus' rising from the dead stuck out to me. I focused on Jesus' words when he found out that Lazarus was ill. Specifically:
“This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
How can we tie this back to what is happening in our world today? Well, for one thing, the Corona virus is running rampant all over the world. Perhaps this illness that so many are suffering from has a greater purpose or greater meaning than we see on the surface. Maybe God is allowing this to happen in order to show us that we need to slow down, take a break from the craziness and business of everyday life, and pay more attention to him. If this is the meaning of the virus, then this illness really IS for the glory of God! I think we can already see how this time is effecting the spiritual lives of our world in lots of different ways. People are praying!! Maybe it is more out of fear than out of love and surrender to God, but it's still amazing! Millions and millions of people prayed the Rosary with Pope Francis on March 19th, asking the intercession of the Blessed Mother during this time. On Wednesday the 25th, Pope Francis asked all Christians to pray the Lord's Prayer (Our Father) for the world. Yesterday, the 27th, our Holy Father gave a special Urbi et Orbi blessing to the world and granted a plenary indulgence to all those who received the blessing and participated in at least one of the following actions: spending a half- hour in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, a half hour of prayer with scripture, or the praying of the Rosary or Chaplet of Divine Mercy for the world. The blessing is given on solemn occasions and literally means, "to the city (of Rome) and to the world". Pope Francis also gave a meditation on the story of Jesus calming the sea and there was a period of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament- it was beautiful! Here's the link to watch the blessing: https://www.facebook.com/ewtnonline/videos/288387819839
For those of us out of school or work, this time may seem boring and difficult to endure. When you feel these feelings of boredom, loneliness, or discouragement, ask Jesus to take them from you. You can also use that time to just sit and be with him. Call a friend and pray the Rosary or Divine Mercy Chaplet with them. Sit silently and listen with an open mind and see what God has to say to you. You could also read and reflect on the daily readings or sit before the Blessed Sacrament in live-streamed Eucharistic Adoration! You could check out some good spiritual books (more book recommendation posts coming soon!).
As you can see, there are many things to do to keep busy in your newfound free time that you ordinarily couldn't seem to make the time for. Use this time to slow down. Use it for the glory of God! Remember that everything, all circumstances, even ones where we can't immediately see what good could possibly come of them, can be used to glorify the Lord.
“Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31
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