The story is told about a blind man who had a strong sense of smell. He could name whatever piece of wood was presented to him just by smelling it. He would say: “This wood is narra, or mahogany, or plywood, etc.” One day, a man presented him a golf club and made him smell it. He struggled with it for a while, and then, with a smile, he said: “Tiger Woods?!”
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In today’s Gospel (Mk. 10, 46-52), Jesus gave sight to a blind man named Bartimaeus. The man may have been blind, but he had a strong sense of smell for God. When he heard that Jesus would be passing by, he cried out, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me!” It was a cry made in desperation and helplessness. It was a cry so full of faith. Have you ever cried to, and with, God in total surrender? If you have, then you are very close to God.
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“He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.” What is your cloak that you cannot throw aside? It can be your comfort zone, your pride, your selfishness, or your attachments that are preventing you from really seeing and from truly following Jesus. It can also be your mindset, or your attitude that blinds you and imprisons you. For as long as you do not throw aside your cloak, you cannot really see, and you cannot be truly free, to follow Jesus.
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Don’t wait for the time when God strips you of your cloak. Better for you to surrender your cloak to him, out of love and obedience, while you still can. In the end, the only cloak we need is the embrace of God. Bartimaeus, being a blind beggar, did not care what the crowd said, or what was expected of him, considering his social status. All he cared about was his desire to see, and to encounter Jesus. When nothing and no one else really matters to you anymore more than God, then you have received your true sight and discipleship.
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A “roadside” experience is where we can encounter God. When we go through sickness, deprivation, persecution, or humiliation, we stop and stand still, and in our pain, as we stand hidden and quiet, we become aware of and feel the presence of God. And we realize that we need Him, and we can depend on Him. When we are “cloakless,” it is then that we are open to God’s embrace. When we are helpless, it is then that we know we are not “godless.” A broken heart is an open heart. On the “roadside,” when the world seems to bypass us, it is then that God draws near to us.
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How is your sense of smell for God? Many people have a strong smell for money, for power, and for pleasures, but have hardly any interest in God and things divine. How is your sense of sight? Do you see God in every person, especially in the lost, the least and the last? Do you see the hand of God in every event that happens in your life? Yes, do you smell, see, and feel God in your life?
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“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asks us this question today. So, tell the Lord what you want Him to do for you! Believe that nothing is impossible to God. To complete the picture, why don’t you also ask the Lord today: “Lord, what do You want me to do for You?”
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“Master, I want to see.” Let us ask the Lord to strip us of our blindness and shortsightedness. May people so blinded by money, power, pleasures, and politics be set free from their selfishness and pride. May we see the “big picture,” and look beyond that which meets the eye, and see with the eyes of faith and love so that we can move on. May we hear Jesus tell us: “Go your way, your faith has saved you.”
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Medjugorje is the “confession capital” of the Catholic world. There will be much peace, unity and reconciliation achieved when we humble ourselves to God and to one another. Sin blinds us. Forgiveness brings back our sight. When was the last time you went to confession?
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In a recent pilgrimage, Maria Victoria Ludan shared with us how our guardian angels can help us solve our relationship problems. How? For example, if you want reconciliation with, or the conversion of, another person, ask your guardian angel to talk to the guardian angel of that person, and let them work it out together and pave the way for peace, unity and enlightenment. Try it! It works.
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Sharing with you my ordination prayer (35 years ago, Oct. 25, 1980): “You have called me, oh, Lord, not so much because of me but in spite of me; not so much to become a somebody but to be a someone to You and to Your people. Keep me, oh, Lord, ever in Your love. Amen.”
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A moment with the Lord:
Lord, help me throw away my “cloaks” that prevent me from really seeing You and that hinder me from truly following You. Amen.