Fourth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

Do not be afraid; just have faith.

When the answers to our prayers are delayed or do not come, we can sometimes turn to God and say, "Forget about it." This is what the people essentially say to Jairus after his daughter dies. No sense in bothering Jesus any more, right? Wrong. We need to continue to pray to Jesus just as much when our prayers are seemingly denied as when they are answered affirmatively. We should not be afraid to have failures come knocking at our door and instead have faith that even in the midst of our trials Jesus will be able to raise us out of the darkness of despair.

What prayers have gone seemingly unanswered by God? Are we sure there was no answer or in hindsight can we see the good which came out of the trial we faced? Are we able to say we are not afraid and have the faith to face whatever difficulties will come along the Way to the Kingdom of God?

O Lord, we do not want to be afraid. Grant us faith in you.

Amen.