EASY ANSWERS
“Do you want to be well?” - John 5:6b
Yes or no questions should be easy, but have you ever noticed how often they can trip you up? We feel like we need to say more, fill the void, justify. It’s like when my kids were little and I’d ask if they had done their homework. I should have received a simple answer, but, more often than not, I would receive instead a litany of reasons why the homework was not done. In today's gospel, we see that this is apparently an age-old problem. The man at the pool of Bethesda is asked a direct and simple question by Jesus, “Do you want to be well?” We’ve been told he’s been ill for thirty-eight years. You would think he would have shouted, “YES!” as quickly as he possibly could. Even here, with the Messiah in his sights and healing just around the corner, the man begins his own litany about why he can’t get to the pool and how others beat him to it. Despite knowing the ending, you find yourself holding your breath and hoping Jesus doesn’t move on to another, more easily pleased person, don’t you? But he doesn’t, and the man is healed in spite of himself. Jesus does not even wait for the answer; he gives the man what he needs. What question is Jesus asking you? What is it you think you need? How will you answer?
What if you take a few minutes to write down the answers to the above questions? The answers don’t have to be “right.” Even if we discover that we resist or are reluctant to answer, allowing ourselves to ask the question might create just enough space for grace to enter and transform us. For Jesus wants nothing more than giving us healing – greater life with him.
God of patience and love, thank you for answering our prayers even when we ignore you or tum away from you. We trust you will provide, heal, forgive, love.
adapted from Mary DeTurris Poust, Daily Reflections for Lent