Are you blind?
We’ve all heard the story before. There’s a blind man and the people around the town typically ignore him, asking him to be quiet. They don’t want to deal with him, he is just a nuisance. But then Jesus comes and things change. The people do what Jesus tells them to and take the time to interact with the man, and by the end of the story, the blind man is miraculously cured and can live an easier life now. (Luckily for this blind man, the story in Mark Chapter 10 doesn’t include any saliva – if that doesn’t ring a bell, go back a couple of chapters to a different blind man’s story and you’ll see what I mean.) It’s such a fairytale-esque ending with the “happily ever after” feel, and I think many of us look at it as a classic Jesus miracle.
Why does this story matter to us? Well, are you blind? Can you see everything clearly? If Jesus was literally in your presence, right in front of your face, would you be able to sense that He was there? As much as I hope that the answer is yes, I know that there have been many times in my life where I could not see clearly. And the truth of the matter is that Jesus is always right in front of our faces.
As the youth minister, this is a story I witness all the time within the context of youth ministry. Every teen, just like every adult, goes through a time where they cannot see. They have questions, they have doubts, they have complicated family situations that they have to deal with every day. I’ve had teens come in my office who are on fire for God, but for every teen that’s passionate about their faith, there are another 5 who are just going through the motions. They are blind to their need for Christ! And who are we to blame them? If we don’t recognize our own need for Christ and actively seek Him, how can we expect our teens to see the beauty of God in their own lives?
Are you blind?
Last year on World Youth Sunday, I hinted at a time in my life where God became a reality for me, when I experienced Him in a profound way. When I was sixteen, my life looked good on the outside. I was the perfect kid: I was in the top 10 of my class, I was involved in Key Club and coordinated service projects, I liked broccoli and other vegetables, I was the first chair flute in symphonic band, I was the section leader in marching band, I got my driver’s permit on the first try, I cantored in our youth choir at church, and somehow I still had time to hang out with my best friends and my siblings. But inside, my life was twisted up. My parents were fighting, with my dad sometimes not sleeping at home because of the arguments they were having, and I was throwing myself into everything I could to get out of the house. Sure, I enjoyed all of the activities I was doing, and I had always been self-motivated to do my best at everything, but life was hard. It wasn’t peaceful. I went to church every Sunday without complaint, but I was blind. I believed in God’s existence, but I didn’t see God working in my life, and I definitely didn’t see Him as a father or a friend.
That summer, I went to on a week-long mission trip to Nashville, Tennessee, painting houses and building wheelchair ramps during the day and staying at a local Catholic school in the evening. It wasn’t my first mission trip, and I had always liked helping people, so the aspect of working hard and serving others wasn’t something that took me out of comfort zone. However, the evening programming was a different story. On Tuesday night, we were scheduled to have Eucharistic Adoration. Now let me tell you, I used to really and truly despise adoration! When my parents would take me to adoration on Holy Thursday as a kid, I remember going in with a backpack full of Catholic activities: a Bible, coloring pages from Veggie Tales, a glow-in-the-dark rosary. I’d even start reading the Gather hymnal out of sheer desperation to not slowly die from boredom. It’s not that I hated Jesus, as I definitely believed that Jesus was somehow there in the Eucharist, but I had never experienced Him in a way that made sitting in His presence something I wanted to do. So when I was told we’d all be participating in adoration that evening, my sixteen-year-old self was a little nervous. Would I get bored? Would I fall asleep? Would people notice that I wasn’t as into it as I thought I should be?
Later on in the evening, I found myself walking with the group towards the church, being led along candle-lined hallways. I considered what I would pray about, and of course my family flashed through my brain. I sat down in a pew, spread out from the girls next to me, and looked at my lap. A musician played guitar and sung something about God being here or Jesus being everything we need, but I didn’t pay attention. I got stuck thinking about my family. Why were we so messed up? Why couldn’t my dad just pull it together? Why were things falling apart? Why couldn’t we just get along like we used to? God, why is life so hard? I was blind to Jesus being right in front of me as the thoughts turned over in my head, trying to figure out if I should be doing something differently or if there was something I could do to protect my younger siblings from feeling as hurt as I did. It was too much. I couldn’t do it on my own, and my tears welled up as my fears bubbled to the surface. I needed help.
I was blind.
I don’t know what changed – maybe the musician paused between songs or someone sitting on my pew shifted around – but something pulled me out of my thoughts, and I looked up. Do you know who was in front of me? Jesus. The Savior of the world. The One who loves each and every one of us. The One who did something different and died for you. The One who died for me. All of a sudden, I wasn’t blind anymore. I could see. No, the host didn’t jump out of the monstrance. No, I didn’t hear God’s voice thunder across the church or whisper in my ear. But I knew. God was present right in front of me. And all of my questions, all of my fears and all of my rambling thoughts, could be given to Him. I wanted a real father to be present in my life? God could be my Father, because He is my Father. I felt His love encompass me, hugging my heart in a way that I still can’t find words for. It changed everything.
I could see.
This is why I do what I do. This is what I want for each and every one of our teens. I want them to be able to see God in their families, in their friends, in the kids that they don’t get along with, in the pictures they post on Instagram and SnapChat, in their own perfectly-created bodies, in their desires. And I want them to see God when He’s right in front of them in the Eucharist, because it has the ability to change everything.
Can you see?
The blind man in the Gospel couldn’t see Jesus. But he knew that he needed Jesus, and when he heard that Jesus was nearby, he continued to cry out until he found himself in Christ’s presence. And when he was finally with Jesus, he asked Him for the one thing that his heart so desperately wanted – he asked to be able to see, and Jesus opened his eyes. It’s scary to me to think of how many of us, teens and adults alike, forget our need for Jesus. We rely on our own thoughts and abilities, thinking that we can get ourselves through. But in the end, try as we might, we can’t save ourselves. We need our Creator, our Savior, our Father. We need to want Him in order to see Him for Who He is truly is. And once we see Him, everything can change.
Look around at the people around you. Can they see?
Hopefully, you are someone who’s been lucky enough to recognize your need for God, realizing you can’t do it on your own. But you need other people to help you open your eyes to God. When I was blind, I didn’t see the people who were around me, ready to help me up. It was only after the fact that I thought about my youth minister who had encouraged me to go on the trip, or the musician and mission trip coordinators who created the environment in which I experienced God. It wasn’t until the day after adoration that I confided in one of the chaperones on the trip, a dad who was close to my family and knew what I was struggling with. Each of these adults already had heard and seen God, and they brought me and many other teens into His presence. They couldn’t force us to open our eyes, but they knew that if we asked God to do it, amazing things would happen. And because of their belief and hope, I can see.
This is what youth ministry is about. And really, this is what being Catholic is about. God is already looking at you, all you have to do is want to look back at Him. Start by gazing upon Jesus as Father lifts Him up in a few minutes. If you desire more time in God’s presence, join our teens as we kick off our monthly EXALT Adoration this Wednesday night and ask Jesus to open your eyes and see Him for who He truly is. And once you’ve seen God’s face and heard his voice, don’t be like the townspeople who wait to be told to bring the blind man to the Lord; instead, go out of your way to help bring those who are blind into the Lord’s presence! The world is filled with teens, with families, and with countless others who need to have their eyes opened in order for the Kingdom of God to reign on Earth. You’ve seen His face, you’ve heard His voice, you’ve gotten a taste of Heaven. What has God done for you? Where can you find joy but in Christ? The world needs your witness and your involvement. Let’s grab as many people as we can and bring them on our journey towards Heaven. Get up, the Lord is calling!
