Thursday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time(Click here for readings)
By FR ALFONSE NAZZARO
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me." Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."
I tend to walk very quickly wherever I go, especially when I am walking out of my office or to my car. People make fun of me because I tend to keep my eyes focused on my primary target. In other words, I don't look around. I stay focused.
Hence, I don't like distractions.
Jesus was a man who was always on a mission. He went from town to town for a purpose. He spoke with high officials for a reason. He spent time with sinners to show them the Way, the Truth and the Life.
But He allowed himself to get distracted. He saw in them His Father's Will.
Holy Distractions. We spend a lot of time and energy avoiding distractions. We'll cross to the other side, when we see someone coming. We'll get up and leave, when we see someone come in. We'll do a ton of things JUST TO AVOID SOMEONE. Why? Because we don't want to get distracted.
And as difficult as this may sound (even to me), I have come to believe that most "distractions" are more like "holy pushes".
Think about it.
Jesus was leaving Jericho and heading to another town when a man named Bartimaeus began calling out his name. How often has something like this happened to you?
People began to tell him to be quiet, to not disturb or disrupt him. How often have you felt like telling someone to be quiet?
But Bartimaeus doesn't quit. He keeps calling out His name, "Son of David, have pity on me!!!"
The Lord was clearly on a mission. Do I really have time for this? There was a sizeable crowd around him and He was ready to work some more of his "magic." Don't these people know how important and busy I am? I don't have time for this!
For all practical purposes, it would seem foolish (a waste of time) for Jesus to stop for him, an elderly and blind man.
But He did.
And this story made it in the Holy Bible.
Holy Distractions!
I think there's something to this. I've gotten in the habit of planning and predicting things that will happen--probably in the hopes of anticipating any problems. Then, something I can't predict will happen: a person will want to talk, a copy machine will break down, an announcement will be made. Although some treat this as chance, I treat this as God's providence. All this happens for a reason even if I'll sometimes never know the reason.
ReplyDeleteI think that's why it's important to develop self-discipline and pray constantly. Oftentimes, we can only react, which causes us to rely on our habits and virtues, instead of act. For this reason, I try to make being kind, patient, and humble my default setting. With God's help, I can be successful sometimes.