Ephesians 4:32 - 5:8 / Luke 13:10-17
Physical pain, sickness and illness are part and parcel of life.
Still they are not to be taken lightly as they wear us down and we don't have that quality of life that we desire.
Hence, good health is what we pray for so that we can live life fully and happily.
In the gospel, we heard of a woman who for eighteen years had been possessed by a spirit that left her enfeebled, and she was bent double and quite unable to stand upright.
She was in the synagogue, and obviously her foremost prayer would be one for relief of her affliction.
When Jesus cured her of her infirmity, she immediately straightened up and with great rejoicing, she glorified God.
If such is the joy of a physical healing, then there is an even greater joy in spiritual healing.
Sin in any form is a spiritual affliction that makes us impure and erodes the peace and joy in our hearts.
In the 1st reading, St. Paul gives some examples of the sins that destroys us within.
Sin darkens our hearts, but God's forgiveness shines the light and cleanses us and brings us peace and joy.
Let us always stay united with God and be children of the light.