Athirst is my soul for the living God"
Today's Scripture Readings

Today’s first reading tells a dramatic story of a non-Israelite who receives healing from the Jewish prophet Elisha. This story seems improbable for several reasons, one of which is that everything happens upon the advice of a servant girl! Secondly, Namaan is not an Israelite and does not want to follow Elisha’s instruction. And yet, there is enough belief in this story from the people surrounding Namaan that he does get healed of his leprosy. In the gospel reading from Luke we see that Jesus knows this story well. Jesus also knows that it was not the Namaan-Elisha story is not the only time that a Gentile outsider has been intimately involved with the prophets f Israel’s God. Jesus’ message is challenging to the Jews in the synagogue because it points out to interrelated ideas. First, Jesus is telling them that he is like Elijah and Elisha, a prophet of God who will not be accepted by them. Prophets often gain respect only years later than they walked the
earth. Secondly, Jesus is drawing attention to the fact that the God of Israel is also the God of non-Israelites. In fact, sometimes these Gentile outsiders respond better to God than do the Israelites.

This is a hard message to hear. In fact, it is extremely offensive to the ears of the Jews, so much so that they drive Jesus out of town… and yet somehow Jesus slips away, unnoticed. In our own lives, we often react similarly. When the message of Jesus becomes truly challenging and difficult to live out, we react by driving him away with our own selfishness. Even if we recognize Jesus as the prophet who is for us, we often behave as though we do not want him in our lives.

During this time of Lent, let us strive to bring Jesus into our lives. Rather than driving him out or letting him slip away unnoticed, let us consciously recognize his presence and be receptive to his will for our lives so that we may say with the psalmist: “Athirst is my soul for the living God.”