Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time

Scripture Readings

Upon reading today's gospel I find myself drawn to this mother and her deep faith. As a mother I can relate to how she must be feeling - she will stop at nothing to help her daughter, to free her from this demon. And her search for healing and freedom, for both she and her daughter, leads her directly to Jesus.

While we may not experience true demonic possession, as this Gospel is written to infer, I believe that we each face our own demons, and so do our loved ones.  Whether it be anxiety, addiction, pride, jealousy or any other number of vices, we each struggle with those  things that separate us from the Lord.

We must take an example from this woman in today's gospel. Even when Jesus was hard to find - in this case he hid in a house so no one would find him - she sought him out and she would not take no for an answer. She went so far as to plead with and even challenge Jesus to deliver her daughter from this demon.  I would compare this in our day to fervent prayer. Even when it seems as if no one is listening we are still called to pray, to go to  adoration, to worship at mass and to bring our petitions to the Lord.

When we practice this fervent prayer, bringing our own struggles and those of our loved ones to the Lord, it is my hope that the prayers will be heard. Our prayers may not always be answered in the way we hope, but I trust that in God's time, which is not our time, we will find deliverance from our own demons as will our loved ones.

- Amanda Grimm