Have The Courage To Believe
Thursday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
My dear encountered couples:
To know God forgives us of our sins can be very uplifting. It helped lift this paralyzed man from his mat. “Your sins are forgiven you,” Jesus told the man. Now “stand up, roll up your mat, and go home.” And the man did.
Have you ever worried about things you’ve done that you wish you could undo, but can’t? You spread stories about someone, you became angry and said some very unpleasant things to someone, and you said things you can’t take back even if you apologize. They ring in your ears, you cringe when you think of them, they make you toss and roll around in bed. The thought of it not only ruins your sleep but also your work and prayers; your peace of mind is gone. You might even feel like you’ve lost the favor of God.
This is where we need the masked man to come riding in on his white horse to rescue us. And that is exactly what has already happened. All it takes is that we believe it.
Jesus Christ has already ridden in and taken the blame for all the unkind and unjust words we have uttered, and for the many bad deeds we have carried out. His Father has forgiven us because of what his Son did. We know we are sorry because it bothers our conscience. Now what we need to do is believe that God forgives us. If we don’t, maybe we are guilty of committing some other kind of sin – like not cooperating with the grace the Holy Spirit gives us, so we can accept God’s forgiveness. But once we do, once we realize we are weak and very imperfect, once we rely on the strength and perfection of Jesus Christ, then and then only will peace of mind start flowing back into us. And our health, both psychological and physical, will improve. “Have courage” Jesus told the man, “your sins are forgiven.” So are ours. Now let us get up off our mats and get on with our lives.
