Rev 1:1-4; 2:1-5 / Luke 18:35-43
There are few things more frustrating than to find ourselves desperately wanting to get somewhere and then faced with signs that say things like "Road Closed" or "Detour." We know where we need to go and we know how to get there, but something or someone stands in our way, often for no good reason. So much of life is like that.
We have a vivid example of that very experience in today's Gospel. A blind beggar heard the noise of the crowd as Jesus approached. The beggar knew he needed to connect with Jesus, and he shouted to Him at the top of his lungs. In turn, the disciples who were leading the procession used every power at their disposal to shut him up and keep him away from Jesus. It didn't work. Jesus heard the man's cries, and the rest is history.
How often are we knowingly or unknowingly obstacles to grace in other people's lives? More often than we'd like to admit. It may be the heavy weight of our bad example that burdens another's heart and keeps him or her away from the Lord that we profess to serve. Or perhaps it's something more conscious, like our need to control the people around us, which so often cuts them off from spontaneous moments of grace.
In any case, none of that is what we want to be for one another. Decide now: Be a bridge to grace, not a barrier!
