This week is the final week of Lent before Holy Week begins.
Holy week is the week during which Jesus prepares to be crucified on the cross, dies for our sins, and rises to new life again on Easter Sunday.
Sunday’s Gospel, John 11: 1-45
There was a man named Lazarus who lived in the village of Bethany with his two sisters, Mary and Martha, and he was ill. His sisters sent this message to Jesus, ‘Lord, your friend is ill.’ On receiving the message, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will end not in death but in God’s glory’. Jesus stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the disciples, ‘Our friend Lazarus is resting, I am going to wake him.’
On arriving, Jesus found that Lazarus had been lying dead in the tomb for four days already. When Martha heard that Jesus had come, she went to meet him and said to Jesus, ‘If you had been here, my brother would not have died, but I know that, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will grant you.’
Jesus said in great distress, with a sigh that came straight from the heart, ‘Where have you put him?’ They said, ‘Lord, come and see.’
Gospel Reflection
There is one line in Sunday’s Gospel that always stands out for me, and I think that it’s a line that is often overlooked.
After Martha has made an incredible profession of faith, and just before Jesus performs the amazing miracle of bringing his friend Lazarus to life again, the two sisters offer Jesus an invitation: ‘Lord, come and see.’
Sometimes the deepest sorrows or desires in our hearts seem too much to bear. Our emotions can seem overwhelming, and impossible to put into words.
If, like me, you don’t find it easy to find the right words to speak to Jesus in prayer, why not use the same words as Martha and Mary? Invite Jesus to come and see what you are facing or feeling. He will always come, and he will always care.
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