Healing

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Healing

Physical   Spiritual

Plunge   Saving   Word

Give Thanks To God

Cleansed

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Luke 17:17 and 18

Jesus cured ten lepers and only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus. Jesus said,

"Ten were healed. Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?"

Reflection

Healing is an amazing experience. When we think of times when we were seriously ill and then healed, we are full of gratitude. The pain is gone, the uncertainty about the future wiped away, and our lives can continue.

The physical healing is much appreciated. However, there is another dimension to the healing that we can overlook---the spiritual healing that takes place as well. The pain in our bodies is acutely felt in our spirit. We are not the same. We are unbalanced and feel out of sorts. We notice the difference.

We have the option of taking the plunge into despair or into healing. In our reading from Luke, Jesus offers healing. He offers His Saving Word.

We have the choice to plunge into that Saving Word and be renewed, refreshed, and healed by it or to plunge into self-pity and discouragement. The one leper who returns knows that Jesus has healed him both in body and in soul.

The spiritual healing has helped this "foreigner" (he was a Samaritan) to experience not just a healing of his leprosy but a healing from just thinking about himself and his problems. 

He returns to Jesus not only to give Him thanks but to kneel before Him in worship and praise. He acknowledges the power and love of Jesus and is thus a foreigner no longer but a follower. 

He knows that Jesus is different not just because he has been healed. Jesus has the Saving Word that can fill our hearts with peace and joy. This is what we are truly looking for. Our spirits need to be renewed and healed even more than our bodies.

It is a parable for our time when there seems to be so much division and bitterness. We need to work for the healing of all of our people and to demonstrate the compassion that Jesus has shown to the "foreigner". 

We need to realize that all of us are sisters and brothers in God's Family and give thanks to God for each and every person. 

We need to be cleansed from the leprosy of hatred and indifference and to embrace the healing power of Jesus. 

Let us plunge our spirits into the healing that Jesus offers so that we can overcome the physical and spiritual ills that divide us and diminish us.

Enjoy your plunge!

1. How do you feel when you are ill?

2. How do you feel after you have been healed from a serious illness?

3. Which is more important for you---a physical or a spiritual healing?

4. How can Jesus heal you?

5. Do you need to be cleansed from anything?

6. What do you feel as you contemplate Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)