REFLECT:
I always marvel at those in the Gospel who encounter Jesus with such strong faith, like the royal official in today’s reading.  He must have been distraught and with little hope as his son was near death.  The sadness and worry must have weighed heavily on his heart. We have all had times like that.  I remember watching the final hours of life slip from my beloved grandmothers and then enduring my father’s illness and death.  And yet in the face of his trail in our scripture reading today, the royal official comes to Jesus!  He seeks out the Lord in his distress and calls out to him for help.  We read that “the man believed what Jesus said to him and left.” Yes, his son was healed, but more importantly, the man’s faith in Jesus gave him such great hope.  Our challenge these two millennium later is to have such faith without actually seeing the person of Jesus as the royal official was blessed to do. We must constantly pray to our heavenly Father for such faith and seek our Lord’s help.  Lent is a time for each of us to grow more deeply in our faith to the Lord.   Our burdens, disappointments, struggles and sorrows can sometimes lead us away from the Lord and faith.  In fact, they are invitations to have faith and seek Jesus.  “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest.”  Jesus promises all who have faith in him to heal our hearts and souls, to forgive our sins, to restore our peace and hope, to bring us the joy of his saving presence at work in our lives.  Always seek the Lord, never grow weary; have faith and trust in the Lord.  He will always be at your side to give you courage.  That’s a promise we can count on!

PRAY:
Psalm 30
I will extol you, O Lord, for you drew me clear and did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O Lord, you brough me up from the nether world; 
You preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
Sing praise to the Lord, you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger lasts but a moment; a lifetime, his good will.
At nightfall, weeping enters in but with the dawn, rejoicing.
Hear O Lord and have pity on me. O Lod, be my helper.
You changed my mourning into dancing.
O Lord, my God, forever will I give you thanks.

ACT:
Make it a point to extend an act of kindness, a word of encouragement, a phone call or send a card to someone who is burdened down and/or struggling with their faith.