Keep moving in faith
He began to cry out, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! - Mk 10:47
Bartimaeus is one of my favorite Bible characters. From his story, I learned several things. First, active faith. The story of Bartimaeus often rebukes me if I just pray and pray without doing anything. Even though I know that prayer is powerful, prayer without action is like we hope to walk ten miles but are reluctant to take the first step. It also reminds me of James' words that faith without works is empty.
The second thing, strong faith. When we read the story of Bartimaeus, we realize that when Bartimaeus shouted at Jesus, some people told him to be quiet. Many things sometimes tell us to be quiet when we cry out to Him. Disappointment, boredom, impatience, and disbelief often tell us to be quite and stop asking the Lord. Today Bartimaeus teaches us never to give up. Have a strong faith and believe that Jesus will never ignore us, even though we may not see any signs that our prayers will be answered. Keep believing, keep moving in faith because only active faith can make our faith big, strong, and strong.
Prayer
May the Holy Spirit continue to strengthen our faith and help us to remember Bartimaeus whenever we want to give up on our faith. May the Lord come to our aid whenever we call out his name in our need. Amen.
Amen.
Fr. Leo Hambur, OSM