As a little boy, I used to pray for God to make me Superboy. I remember praying for this fervently every night when I said my prayers before going to bed. And I believed God would do it for me. Of course, I never got to fly; although I have recurring dreams of flying. I never acquired any of Superboy’s powers. But several years later, sometime during my career with a pharma company, I had just finished making a presentation and facilitating the discussions that followed. During the break, I overheard a colleague who did not particularly like me say to the others: “Superboy is at it again.” She said it of course reeking with sarcasm but I had to smile because the remark had me remembering my prayer as a child. God did deliver, although in a totally different manner. I had a smug feeling that the monicker my colleagues had for me behind my back was my prayer as a child.
Often, it takes time for me to realize and see that what I have prayed for or wished for is already here. It also took some time for the apostles and the disciples to realize that the resurrection had taken place. For them, the end was Calvary. They had never expected Christ would rise from the dead. Their worst fear, and also that of the High Priest and the other religious leaders, was someone would take the body away – as the final insult to their would-be leader-messiah.In fact, after the crucifixion, they were huddled together in some hiding place full of sadness and disappointment mixed with fear and trembling for the Jewish leaders and the Roman authorities.
And all of a sudden, Christ was there. Their deepest hope was staring them in their faces. Their joy and happiness was already standing there before them. And yet they did not see him. It took a while before they could experience what Mary was telling them: “I have seen the Lord.”
I too have seen the Lord. But I have also missed him many times. He was there and I did not see him: within me, in people I encounter everyday, in nature, in silence and solitude. The Risen Lord could walk through walls and could teleport. What did the apostles and disciples do to be able to see the Risen Christ? How can I sharpen my senses to be more sensitive to his presence with me and around me today? This I pray for.
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord“; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
John 20:11-18
Reblogged this on Praying for the millennials.