The Man Born Blind

John's Gospel of the man born blind has much to teach us……about ourselves and our relationship with Jesus.  I can only imagine what it must have felt like for this man to finally be able to see!   I'm sure he never expected that day to be any different than the day before, or the day before that.  His life was what it was.  And, then, for whatever reason, he meets this stranger who gives him his sight.  What an unexpected miracle!  He didn't find out until later that it was Jesus, Jesus who is "the light of the world." (John 9:5)  And finally, when meeting Jesus and being asked by Him if he believed in the Son of Man, he answered, “Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus says, “You have seen him, the one speaking with you is he.”  His answer was, “I do believe.”

Lent, for us, can be like that day for the blind man. How long have we been walking around blind and in darkness?  Not necessarily physical blindness, but spiritual blindness.  Do we see Jesus and believe that He is in our life and the world around us?  Can we ever expect that life-changing miracle?  That’s what Lent is all about.  It calls us to fasting, almsgiving and prayer.  For me, prayer is the “clay” that opens my eyes.  Through our Lenten prayer we are given forty days to meet and talk with Jesus, forty days to have Him help us come out of our spiritual blindness to see Him in our life and the lives of those around us.  He’s there......helping us deal with a family problem or illness, sending us that co-worker to assist in getting that project done, seeing the smile of the student we pass on the street.  All we have to do is look, really see, and believe!

There’s still time to get started with your Lenten prayer.  University Ministry has a “The Little Black Book” of daily meditations for Lent available for the taking.  That miracle might be closer than you think!