MY daily reflection and prayer:
Monday, May 16, 2016
The Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Dear my friends,
Here is the Gospel for us today according to Mark 9:14-29
As Jesus came down the mountain with Peter, James, and John and approaching the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and scribes arguing with them. Immediately on seeing him, the whole crowd was utterly amazed. They ran up to him and greeted him. He asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” Someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I have brought to you my son possessed by a mute spirit. Wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive it out, but they were unable to do so.” He said to them in reply, “O faithless generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I endure you? Bring him to me.” They brought the boy to him. And when he saw him, the spirit immediately threw the boy into convulsions. As he fell to the ground, he began to roll around and foam at the mouth. Then he questioned his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” He replied, “Since childhood. It has often thrown him into fire and into water to kill him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus said to him, “‘If you can!’ Everything is possible to one who has faith.” Then the boy’s father cried out, “I do believe, help my unbelief!” Jesus, on seeing a crowd rapidly gathering, rebuked the unclean spirit and said to it, “Mute and deaf spirit, I command you: come out of him and never enter him again!” Shouting and throwing the boy into convulsions, it came out. He became like a corpse, which caused many to say, “He is dead!” But Jesus took him by the hand, raised him, and he stood up. When he entered the house, his disciples asked him in private, “Why could we not drive it out?” He said to them, “This kind can only come out through prayer.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.
***
IN the Gospel today, Jesus warns and calls his disciples faithless generation. What does it mean?
How often we do our work without including Jesus Christ in any real way. We exclude him from our work. There we lack faith. When we lack faith, we can simply argue!
Jesus Christ is always be with us but we just don’t allow him room to work. We are then working without faith that we are called faithless generation!
In such situation we have to learn to ask Jesus Christ, as the boy’s father cried out, “Lord, help my unbelief!” Jesus Christ then will teach us that believing is also praying. He instructs all the apostles on the need for prayer. So he says to them, “This kind can only come out through prayer.”
In the Perpetual Adoration of the Eucharist while worshipping Jesus Christ we ask him to grant us faith. So in humble heart we pray, “Lord, help our unbelief!” This humble confession always comes to rest on the greatness of God’s power and the fullness of his love.
Let’s pray: Lord Jesus Christ, we believe in your presence in our life, family and work. Grant me an increase of faith! Teach us to pray and work with great faith and trust in you now and forever. Amen.
Kredit foto: Ilustrasi (Ist)
