THURSDAY of 27th WEEK
“Jesus said to them again : ’Suppose one of you had a friend and you went to find him in the middle of the night, to ask him : ’My friend, lend me three loaves ; a friend of mine has arrived after a journey and I don’ t have anything to offer him.’ and if, from within, the other person replies :’ Stop bothering me! The door is shut now. My children and I are in bed. I can ’t get up to give you loaves. I tell you, if the man doesn’t get up and give it to him for friendship’s sake, persistence will make him get up and give his friend all he needs.”
Jesus teaches his disciples the attitude of the one who prays, of the one who is in need and who doesn’t take any precautions to ask help from the one he considers as a friend. Jesus concludes his parable by saying that the one who is sollictated responds because he is annoyed.Who is the one who in the middle of the night is disturbed and who doesn’t yield to the one who asks for a bit of bread, with insisitance, says Jesus.It really is a question about being disturbed for at this period in houses there was just one room where all the family lived,worked and rested. In the evening they brought out the mats and everyone went to bed! We dont wake up all the family just because someone is knocking on the door for a bit of bread!Everyone’s resting, they’re tired. No, says the man who’s been bothered. You can see very well my family is in a state where they can’t be disturbed. Jesus doesn’t seek how God reacts to prayer but he describes what our inner disposition should be like. It is with a total simplicity in our hearts and according to the trusting man within us that we should express our desire to God, all our needs, expectations and supplications. We ask for the grace to perservere in prayer so that we be alays be answered.
Well, I say to you: ask and you will recieve, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. Whoever asks receives, whoever seeks, finds and for the one who knocks the door will be opened to you.
We can’t say that we don’t know how to pray, after this example given to us . Yet we do have a hard time praying. Prayer is a disposition of surrender and liberty, an encouragement to ask for what we need and free our hearts with simplicity and candour, with this confidence that encourages us to ask God for what we want withour being embarassed.If he continues to knock, the friend will get what he wants, said Jesus. Of course he will, for, God is good and always answers our prayers. It is the perserverance asked by Jesus in prayer for the reponse from God to all the questions asked when we are going through ordeals is really offered up.
’Well, I say to you,’ I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you ; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks recieves, everyone who seeks finds; everyone who knocks will have the door opened. What father among you, if his son askd for a fish, would hand him a snake? Or if he asked for an egg, and him a scorpion? So, then,if you, evil as you are,know how to give your children what is good, how much more will the Heavly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him."
When personal prayer is an act of confidence, faith and surrender we are exauces and the acomplishment of our prayer escapes us. God doesn t answer our prayers because he gives us what we ask for, but because he gives us his Holy Spirit; In our heart, when we have completely surrended to God, trusting Him, we come to a point where all we want is to desire nothing else than what he desires to give us, that is, the Holy Spirit. The Blessed Trinity decides the coming of Jesus in human flesh, and he goes down into our human distress. He visits us down in our death so as to free us at all price, so that we believe ourselves to be infinitely loved. This memorial of the Infinite Goodness of God we celebrate in each Eucharist. This thanksgiving is the place we make memory of the coming of Jesus in human flesh. His Passion saves us and his resurrection frees us from death and sin. By his Ascension, Jesus brings us to follow Him so we become sons and daughters tenderly loved by God. We need the Holy Spirit to participate in this Love that comes from God. We want to remain in this memorial God gives us.he