Day 107

Joshua 15:1-63; Luke 18:18-43; Psalm 86:1-17; Proverbs 13:9-10

WHEN JESUS’ MINISTRY began, He left the Jordan River and traveled through the Judean wilderness on His way back to Galilee. In Luke’s Gospel today, we found Jesus taking the same path in reverse. Jesus was making His way to Jerusalem for the final time before His arrest, and the path led through the ancient city of Jericho. A blind beggar had been sitting along the road when he heard the commotion surrounding Jesus. Upon inquiry, he realized that a healer was passing by. Obviously, the blind man had no idea the weight on Jesus’ shoulders —no one really understood what was about to take place.

The blind man began to yell: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Luke 18:38). The crowd shunned him, but he yelled even more to get above the noise. He was desperate to get Jesus’ attention despite the ridicule —and it worked.

Jesus had the man brought to Him, and a beautiful exchange took place. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked.

“Lord,” the blind man said, “I want to see!”

And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you” (Luke 18:41-42).

The beautiful collaboration that took place on this dusty desert path outside of Jericho should affect us all on many levels. First, Jesus stopped. Jesus was on His way to a brutal death, and if we were on the same path, with the same foreknowledge, we would probably be more than just a little preoccupied. Second, Jesus invited the blind man to articulate his desire. And last, Jesus’ response to the man’s healing wasn’t self-aggrandizing. He acknowledged the collaboration between the human and the divine, saying, “Your faith has healed you.”

From this simple story, we see that God is not too preoccupied for us. He wants us to articulate our desires and share our hearts, and He intends to collaborate with us in our restoration. This is something truly to rejoice over today. What makes you desperate enough to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”? He’s listening.

PRAYER:

Teach me your ways, O LORD, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you. With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great.