Javier Castellanos, LC
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Christ, our King.
Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
«I offer You, Lord, my thoughts, help me to think of You; I offer You my words, help me to speak of You; I offer You my works, help me to do Your will; I offer You my sorrows, help me to suffer for You. All that You want, Lord, I want, precisely because You want it, as You want it and for as long as You want it». So be it (Fragment of the prayer of Pope Clement XI).
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to Luke 18, 35-43
At that time, as Jesus was approaching Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the side of the road, begging alms. When he heard people passing by, he asked what it was, and they told him that it was Jesus the Nazarene, who was on his way. Then he began to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Those ahead scolded him to be quiet, but he began to shout louder, ”Son of David, have mercy on me!“ Then Jesus stopped and ordered him to be brought to him. When he was near, he asked him, ”What do you want me to do for you?“ He answered him, ”Lord, let him see.‘ Jesus said to him, ’Restore your sight; your faith has healed you.“ Immediately the blind man's sight came back, and he followed him, blessing God. And all the people, when they saw this, praised God.
Word of the Lord.
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
All you have to do is name the person. But, deep down, each one of us is this blind man on the outskirts of Jericho. Let us thus draw near to Christ who is coming, let us ask him to cure us of our illness....
Bartimaeus was this man's name. He won the heart of Christ by his insistence on crying out. But it was not the volume of the cries or the number of them that moved the Lord to heal him. It was faith that saved this man, that deep faith that springs from the heart. In this time of prayer, let us dare to cry out to the Lord, not with our mouths, but with our hearts: «Son of David, have mercy on me!.
To cry out with the heart means to put all our trust in Jesus Christ. It means making ourselves vulnerable before Him, showing ourselves as we are, with what hurts us, with what worries us, with our longings and hopes. It means putting ourselves totally in his hands and letting him do what he wants with us.
Then He asks, «What do you want me to do for you?» He wants to act in our lives. He just needs an open heart, a heart that trusts the Friend who never fails. Bartimaeus went straight to the point: «Lord, let him see.» Let us also tell him that concrete situation, that specific need that each one of us has. That is why he came, to heal our souls, to satisfy our hunger, to lift us out of the misery of the spirit....
Christ, moreover, has a generous Heart. He not only comes and heals the eyes, but enters into life and saves it from all sin, from all anguish. He wants to give everything. The heart that cries out to him with confidence ends up receiving more than what it has asked for. Let us ask the Lord with cries of faith. Or, let us ask him to teach us to cry out with our heart. «Lord, increase my faith, have mercy on me!».
«Jesus] stops to respond to the cry of Bartimaeus. He allows himself to be questioned by his request, he allows himself to be involved in his situation. He is not content to give him alms, but wants to meet him personally. He does not give him directions or answers, but asks a question: “What do you want me to do for you”? It might seem a useless request: what can a blind man desire if not sight? However, with this question, asked “face to face”, direct but respectful, Jesus shows that he wants to listen to our needs. He wants a dialogue with each one of us about life, about real situations, that excludes nothing before God».
(Homily of H.H. Francis, October 25, 2015).
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
I will seek to help someone in a specific need, doing so with joy and generosity.
Farewell
We thank you, Lord, for all your benefits, you who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
