Acts 4:32-35 / 1 John 5:1-6 / John 20:19-31
In our busy lifestyles, time is an important factor for us.
There doesn’t seem to have enough time everyday to do the things we want to do.
We may even cut down on our sleeping time to clear off some of the items in our to-do list for the day.
But that may not be productive, and our health gets affected. We may end up getting more tired out, and we slow down, and we take more time to get other things done.
So, the cycle goes on, we have things to do, we tire ourselves in order to get more things done, and we end up taking more time.
And with that, we have become impatient and frustrated with delays and lateness, because time is wasted.
When we order the food at the food stall, the food must be ready in 10 minutes, otherwise we will get agitated and frustrated. Hunger can lead to anger.
When we order an item online, it must come within a couple of days, or better still, the next day.
And this attitude may also creep into our spiritual life. We pray and we want our prayers to be answered immediately.
And when we think that God is not listening to our prayers, or taking His time to answer prayers, then we get agitated, frustrated and disappointed.
In the gospel, the disciples were huddled in fear in a room with the doors locked.
Jesus was dead and buried, and their lives were also like dead and buried.
Then suddenly, the Risen Lord Jesus came and stood among them, and greeted them with “Peace be with you”.
It was a stunning moment for the disciples, but they were filled with joy.
All the disciples were there in the room, except for one - Thomas.
And when the disciples told him that they had seen the Risen Lord, Thomas refused to believe.
He also demanded that he wants to put his finger and his hand into those wounds in order to believe.
Eight days later, the Risen Lord Jesus appeared again to the disciples, and this time Thomas was with them.
Thomas saw and he believed. He may not even need to touch those wounds to believe.
We may wonder, why does it have to take 8 days later for the Lord Jesus appear again to His disciples.
Couldn't He appear as soon as Thomas was with the disciples, or ASAP?
And by extension, we also wonder, why doesn't God answer our prayers immediately, or ASAP?
Thomas had to wait 8 days to see the Risen Lord. With our busyness and urgency in life, we would like our prayers to be answered in 8 minutes, or 8 hours.
8 days would seem too long because we don't like delays or to wait.
But the number 8 has the biblical meaning of revelation.
The 8th day means in God's time, and His will and His plan will be revealed to us and we will also be able to accept it.
There was this occasion when I went to the hospital to visit a patient. The patient's daughter was there and she lamented about the problems and stress she was facing in life.
So, I gave her the Sacred Heart prayer card, and told her to send in a petition, or better still, to come for the Devotion to the Sacred Heart.
She looked surprised, and she said that she heard about the Devotion to the Sacred Heart, but thought that it was not practiced anymore.
I shared with her that prayers have been answered, and she should pray for the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
As I reflected about it, for that lady, it was the 8th day for her, a revelation for her, as Jesus revealed to her His Heart.
Let us continue to pray with faith and hope, and our 8th Day will come when Jesus will reveal His love for us.
And then, like Thomas, we will exclaim “My Lord and my God”.