Fourth Sunday of Lent

“Jesus said to him, ‘Stand up, take your mat and walk.’ At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.” —John 5:8–9

During my early teen years, I went through a period of poor posture and rounded shoulders. I recall my mother’s frequent admonition to “stand up straight!” I was perfectly able to do it; it was simply that I’d grown comfortable in my slouch.

But after thirty-eight long years the man at the pool could not stand up straight by his own efforts. The rush of healing grace through Jesus, however, brought him to his feet. Jesus was always raising people up to their full measure of life. He recognized their capacity and called them gently to be more. He also stood up for people who couldn’t do it on their own, especially the poor, the outcast, and the marginalized.

At times, we too sense subtle inner stirrings that call us to a change of posture. We’ve grown too comfortable and become complacent in our ways. We wonder who or what will bring us to our feet. And then, as if by divine orchestration, some person or situation demands of us a response beyond our comfort zone. And once more, grace providentially squeezes its way into the crevices of our souls and we, too, stand tall again.

—Written by Sister Mary Ellen Vaughan

Excerpted from The Gift of the Cross, ed. by Andrew Gawrych, CSC. Copyright (c) 2009 by the Priests of Holy Cross, Indiana Province. Used by permission of the publisher, Ave Maria Press, P.O. Box 428, Notre Dame, IN 46556, www.avemariapress.com