DAILY HOMILIES #Jesus

Pray with faith; pray with expectation; pray like Jarius and the woman with the issue of blood. Ensure that your actions before, during and after praying do not contradict your faith. The woman with the issue of blood backed her faith with action by touching the fringe of Jesus’ garment. Jarius, despite being a ruler in Israel, knelt before Jesus.

In his joy, Jesus presents a special invitation to everyone who may be troubled, disturbed, harassed and dejected like sheep without a shepherd (Cf. Matthew 10:36). What is this invitation? “Come to me, all who labour and are heavily laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me. (Matthew 11:28-29) Coming to Jesus implies learning from Him. We cannot say we have come to Jesus if we fail to learn from Him.

While the friends of the paralytic made their faith visible, the scribes at that gathering felt that Jesus was blaspheming. For them, Jesus was a man trying to make himself equal to God. These scribes dared not voice their thoughts, but Jesus could hear them. We may pretend about our faith, but we cannot fool God; He knows when our presence in the Church is a formality.

It annoys God when we sing melodiously and dance skilfully in church, yet return home to sin without remorse. It annoys God when we do not make any efforts to repent of our sins yet continue to make people around us believe we are holy. “Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps, I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

The question is not whether or not we will face trials, but how do we respond in such moments? Faced with the storms, the disciples expected the worst; they cried out, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” Jesus was disappointed with them not because they prayed but because they prayed with fear; that is, they were not expecting their prayers to be answered.

The irony of life is that while we look down on what is ours, others value it more. While many were struggling to believe in Jesus, a Centurion, a Roman Soldier in charge of a hundred soldiers, had enough faith to see that Jesus is God; that He only needs to speak the word and the whole world would obey. Even Jesus was amazed at his great faith: “In no one in Israel have I found such faith.” Can Jesus say this of you too? Do you believe there is power in prayer?

Never forget God when your life is rosy. The psalmist sings: “Let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not.” The question is – why did they forget God in the first place? Why did they worship false gods? Like the Israelites, we are fond of asking, “Where is God?” in times of crisis, but when enjoying peace and success, we say, “Who is God?” Whenever we forget God and start trusting in ourselves (our connections, riches, security mechanisms, etc.), God shows us that we are dust.

It is easy to judge people when we are not in their shoes, do not understand them, or have never experienced their situation. It is very easy to condemn a footballer when you are not the one kicking the ball before a crowd of 45,000 people. It is easy to condemn a politician for stealing public funds when you have never been in a position with such access to public funds.

When you are terrified, open your mouth and start singing praises. Be like Paul and Silas, who could sing from prison and the glory of God manifested mightily. The chains were broken, and all the prisoners were set free. Faced with threats on every side from many who wanted his downfall, Jeremiah prays: “O Lord of hosts, who triest the righteous, who seest the heart and the mind, let me see thy vengeance upon them, for to thee have I committed my cause.”

Today’s first reading continues the story of Joash, the young king who bit the hand that fed him. Despite all that the priest Jehoiada did to protect him from being slain by Athaliah, Joash failed to protect Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada. Another evil of King Joash was his support for idol worship. Under his watch, Israel served Asherim, abandoning God’s ways. Nemesis caught up with Joash when the Syrian army, with only a few men, massacred the great army of Judah.

To pray well, you must try to listen to what God is saying in the depths of your heart, and this is only possible when you do not talk too much. Jesus says, “In praying, do not heap up empty phrases.” Jesus warns against using prayer to attract others’ applause.

Elijah told Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said: “I pray you, let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” (2 Kings 2:9). Elisha, like Solomon, was given a blank cheque to ask for anything. He could have asked for riches, long life or the death of his enemies, but he asked for a double share of Elijah’s spirit. When I pray, what do I ask for? Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Luke 11:9). With God, all things are possible. If you do not seek, you will not find.