Love Restores

The appointed Gospel reading for the Church’s daily prayer continues in John:

 

Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, ‘Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.’ The official said to him, ‘Sir, come down before my little boy dies.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your son will live.’ The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started on his way. As he was going down, his slaves met him and told him that his child was alive. So he asked them the hour when he began to recover, and they said to him, ‘Yesterday at one in the afternoon the fever left him.’ The father realized that this was the hour when Jesus had said to him, ‘Your son will live.’ So he himself believed, along with his whole household. Now this was the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee. (Jn. 4:46-54).

 

Capernaum is about 20 miles from Cana; that’s a good day’s walk. Since Capernaum is by the sea, the walk to Cana is all uphill. Imagine that royal official walking all that way to ask Jesus to heal his son!  The official asks Jesus to come with him; Jesus simply tells the official that his son will live.  The official believed Jesus.  He took Jesus at his word.  Then the official starts his 20 mile walk back to Capernaum, 40 miles in 2 days.  What had he heard about Jesus, what would inspire him to walk that distance.  One can imagine that he did it for love of his son.  It was love that motivated the official to go and ask.  Jesus recognized that love in him and responded as only God can, by restoring life.  Love has the power to restore, and that power emanates from the very being of God to us.  Believe.

 

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, you taught us that God loves each and every one of us right where we are, and that through his love, he brings us to where we ought to be.  Make us instruments of your love in the world.  Amen.

 

CALENDAR REMINDERS

 

Annual Parish Meeting will be Sunday, 11 January 2015, after the 9:00 am Eucharist.

 

ESL has begun and continues now on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 6 pm to 8 pm in Sutton Hall.

 

Al-Anon in Spanish begins today, 8 January, 6 pm.

 

Please remember everyone on our Prayer List, especially those who are recovering or ill including Stacy, Liz, Mary, Melva, Pat and Evelyn, and for all of those who are traveling, especially Bob.

 

Your servant in Christ,

 

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+

St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church

Galveston, Texas 77550