Just last night, my husband and I were talking about good friends. I mentioned how in one city I had so many acquaintances but very few close friends and how in another city I had great affection for many of my friends, even though I haven’t lived there in almost a decade.
We were also reminiscing about how long we were single and how neither one of us ever thought we would get married. I had resigned myself to the fact that I would just have to be the best single aunt I could be, but would never have children of my own, and he just thought he would live with his family for the rest of his life. And here we are, about to celebrate our 10th anniversary in a few months, with 5 beautiful children!
Life really does have a way of throwing you for a loop sometimes, but then it throws you plenty of surprises too, and I’m talking about the good kind. I am reminded of the Heinz ketchup commercial “The best things come, to those who wait.” I always thought that was tongue in cheek, but with a few more years under my belt, I can see that it actually applies to many situations.
For example, I ask myself how long the leper in today’s Gospel had to wait to be healed by Jesus. The passage doesn’t mention his age, but somehow I imagine he had dealt with the disease for some time. And just like that, with seven words from Jesus, “The leprosy left him immediately.”
Perhaps there is something that you have been praying for for years, even decades. Perhaps you are hoping for physical healing or waiting for a loved one to come back to the Church. Perhaps you are experiencing spiritual dryness and are asking for more consolation in your prayer life. The list could go on and on just as our waiting can go on and on.
Our faith tells us that with just one word from Jesus, each one of these situations can be resolved, if He wills it. Maybe today is not the day, nor tomorrow, but one day, either this side of eternity or the other, we will be made clean just like the leper.
Let us use our time of waiting, no matter how long it may be, to draw ever closer to our Lord in prayer. Amen.
Tami Urcia grew up in Western Michigan, a middle child in a large Catholic family. She spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, studying theology and philosophy, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in Western Kentucky. She loves tackling projects, finding fun ways to keep her little ones occupied, quiet conversation with the hubby and finding unique ways to love. She works at her parish, is a guest blogger on CatholicMom.com and BlessedIsShe.net, runs her own blog at https://togetherandalways.wordpress.com and has been doing Spanish translations on the side for over 20 years.
Feature Image Credit: Umit Bulut, https://unsplash.com/photos/qbTC7ZwJB64
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