Jeremiah 31:7-9 / Hebrews 5:1-6 / Mark 10:46-52
A disadvantage is understood as an unfavourable position or circumstance, or a condition that reduces the chances of success or effectiveness.
Whether the disadvantage is personal or external, it is not something that we are happy about.
A disadvantage can also be called a problem, and as with any problem, we want to look for solutions.
So, if we are poor and the others around us are rich, then we wouldn’t buy what those others could buy, and we couldn’t live the lifestyle that those others could have.
We will have to settle for the minimum.
Or, if we are of poor health, then we can forget about competing in sports or winning medals and trophies.
But with every problem, there can a solution. It is futile to keep complaining about problems without looking for a solution or an alternative.
But there are some problems that may not have immediate solutions.
There is this story of a young man who is poor and unhappy because he couldn't find a girlfriend and he wanted to get married.
So, he went to see a wise men for advice. The wise man looked at him and said, “You will be poor and unhappy and unmarried till you are 40.”
Then the young man asked, “Until 40? Then after that?”
The wise man replied, “After that you will get used to it.”
Maybe there are some disadvantages and problems in life that require some getting used to.
In the gospel, Bartimaeus, or the son of Timaeus, was in a difficult disadvantage and with many problems.
He was blind, and he had to beg for people's sympathy to get on with life, and he had to get used to it.
More than that, he doesn't seem to have an identity of his own. He was called the son of Timaeus.
He was really in the depths of poverty. He has no identity, no dignity and maybe even no sympathy.
Because when he heard that Jesus was passing by, he shouted for Jesus to have pity on him.
And the people around him scolded him and told him to keep quiet.
But Bartimaeus only shouted all the louder for Jesus to have pity on him.
The disadvantage of Bartimaeus was that he couldn't see.
But his ears could hear that Jesus was near, and he still had a voice to call out to Jesus.
Even though the people around him tried to silence him, there was one thing that was his advantage, and that was pointed out by Jesus.
When Jesus asked Bartimaeus what does he want, Bartimaeus asked to let him see again.
The reply of Jesus is truly a revelation for Bartimaeus - Go, your faith has saved you.
The disadvantage of Bartimaeus was his blindness.
But his advantage was that he had ears of faith to hear that Jesus is near.
He also had a voice of faith to call out to Jesus to have pity on him.
Each of us has our own disadvantages in life as well as our problems.
Even the famous biblical characters have their struggles:
Moses had a speech impediment.
David was considered too young and inexperienced to fight Goliath.
And when he became a king, he committed two grave sins of adultery and murder.
Peter was impulsive.
Paul was a ferocious persecutor of Christians.
But at the very core of their lives, they had faith in God.
With faith, we will face our problems with prayer.
And with prayer God will turn our disadvantages into revelations of how marvellous and wonderful His love is for us.
And may our prayer be: Jesus, have pity on me.