When Lazarus died, Mary of Bethany must have been heartbroken. You can see why she would have been. She loved her brother Lazarus, and she trusted and loved Jesus. Like everybody else in her community, she knew that Jesus could heal sick people. So when her brother got sick and she knew that Jesus was nearby, she turned to him for help. Then she waited three desperate miserable days. During those days Jesus didn’t come, and Lazarus died.
In this story the Lord knows better than Mary what she herself actually wants.
And so she was devastated. Her beloved brother was dead, and her beloved Jesus seemed to have disregarded her in her time of need.
What the story makes clear, though, is that the Lord can know better than a human person does what she most wants. We are not surprised if the Lord knows better than we do what is good for us, and we generally expect that good to be something we don’t want. But in this story the Lord knows better than Mary what she herself actually wants.
When Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, Mary has her brother back and is loved by Jesus in a way more deeply fulfilling to her and more glorious than the mere healing of her brother in his sickness would have been.
And here is the thing to notice: Jesus was in the process of giving her what she wanted most even as she was firmly persuaded that she had lost it forever.
The people of Divine Mercy thought their church was dead. Their charismatic leader walked out the door. Like Mary, they trusted him but didn’t get what they wanted when he just left their church.
However, Jesus is about life. Mary gets her brother back from the dead in a way she never dreamed was possible. And this weekend Divine Mercy Polish National Catholic Church whom people thought was dead will reopen its doors.
Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends, especially their new pastor, Deacon Erick that you pray for him as he gives new life to this parish. Spread the good news on your Facebook and Twitter accounts that Divine Mercy PNCC is back from the dead, It’s doors will be open this weekend for Masses and Holy Week services. Jesus has raised you up because He is our God of life and you are His divine people. Pick up your cell phone now and call ten people to join you this weekend to celebrate your joy like Mary when she saw her brother Lazarus come out of his grave.
