The Good Word for Oct. 25th ~ for the complete Sunday readings click here. 

Have you ever had to call out for help? I have a 6 year old who loves our backyard play set. She doesn’t always use the hanging rings or swing or ladder in the way they were intended. Every now and again she gets herself stuck. Usually this means she is hanging upside down with a foot wedged somewhere and she can’t quite figure out how to get down with out landing on her head. It’s then, when she knows she needs help, that she yells for help.

In the gospel today, when Bartimeaus hears that Jesus is near, he cries out, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” Bartimaeus needs help. He knows that he is stuck in his current situation and calls out for help because he really believes that Jesus will help him.

The difference between Bartimaeus and my daughter’s cry for help is that my daughter knows what I am going to do for her. She knows I will hold her up, help her get un-stuck, and lower her down without her getting hurt. But when Bartimaeus calls out for Jesus he does so trusting that Jesus will do something for him, but he doesn’t really know what.

For me the lesson is that when we call out to Jesus, open to whatever he is willing to do for us, great things can happen – maybe even greater than we imagine in the first place. And our cry doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t need to be the right incantation of words as if prayer is a magic spell. Prayer is as simple as calling out Jesus’ name and waiting in hope for his answer.

When was the last time you cried out to Jesus? Are there people or pressures in your life telling you to be quiet and stay in your place? What do you want God to do for you?

No matter what is going on in your life right now; whether you feel like you are blindly moving forward, barely surviving each day or you feel like you have everything under control, God wants to help you see better than you do right now. Cry out to him. Call Jesus and he will come near.

Live It:
Next time you are alone, find some silence, and say out loud, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” And then listen.