Something This Way Comes
Sometimes we pray hard for something, and it doesn't appear that God is listening.
We may ask, "Does God not hear me? Or has He chosen not to listen?"
But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?" - John 11:37
In today's reading, John takes us back to the death of Lazarus.
It is a fitting time for us to read this now, as we approach Holy Week, the time of the year when we witness first hand through the readings and reflections, the death of Jesus.
Imagine how Martha and Mary, sisters and close friends of Jesus felt when he did not come to be with their brother when he was dying.
It had to be painful to have him show up after Lazarus was buried, when they fully believed he could have saved him from death.
Others around them felt the same way and questioned the loyalty of Jesus.
Now, the way John paints the picture, Jesus delayed to perform the miracle of bringing Lazarus back from the dead. Perhaps, but that seems a bit heartless, doesn't it?
Look at all the suffering and pain his family and friends endured for all those days. And now, when they had exhausted their hope, Jesus comes and all they could think of is what he could have done had he been there.
How often do we feel like giving up?
It would be nice of the process worked the way we want it to, where the answers we seek come as soon as we ask, where the problem can be fixed simply by asking for help.
But it isn't our process, is it?
In the end, the sisters asked Jesus to come, he came, and their brother was saved. They got the answer they wanted, only not the way they thought they needed it.
There are two lessons here, I think.
One. The answer doesn't always take the form we expect.
Two. If we don't ask, the answer is no.
So, even if we feel like it is hopeless, even if the time has passed when we needed an answer, even if the answer was already "No!", we should keep on praying with hope, in faith.
Something this way may still come.
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