In his book The Best Thing to Be, Henry Durbauville tells the story of a young girl from London who won a prize at a flower show. The girl had grown her flower in an old teapot on the attic window of an old, crumbling house. When asked how she had managed to produce such a beautiful flower, the girl replied that she had carried it from place to place so that it would always be in the sun. If we remain exposed to the sun of God’s grace and are warmed by care, kindness, and attention, we can flourish for God’s glory. Durbauville reminds readers of Jesus’ words: ‘As the Father loves me, so I love you’ (Jn 15:9). This means that we are constantly in the warmth of Christ’s love. We remain in Christ’s love when we show love to others.
The evangelist writes, ‘A great multitude came to him because they had heard what he was doing’ (Mark 3:8b). It was only in the proximity of Christ’s love that so many could be healed. We hear many cries around Jesus: ‘You are the Son of God!’ But who is shouting this? These cries are not the work of the Holy Spirit, but of the unclean spirits whom Christ warned not to betray him.
An interesting connection is offered here. In several places in the Gospels, Jesus says that he does not want certain people to make him visible. He explicitly forbids those he has healed from talking about it. It is as if he does not wish neighborfor evangelization to be based solely on physical healing, but rather for it to be more profound and meaningful. Jesus is concerned with a testimony that contains no shortcuts or moments of questioning his own unpreparedness or superficiality, so that the devil cannot use it for his own ends. Only then will their lives take on a new direction, and they will discover a beauty, joy, and happiness that no one can take away from them.
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A young family decided to buy an old house in a village. The house, yard, and garden were in a very neglected state. They began to fix it up. A neighbor showed them where a well had once been located. The new owners had the abandoned well cleaned, and within a few days, they had access to fresh, excellent-tasting water. The world and the devil often fill our spiritual wells with human theories, worldly thinking, and distrust of God. Immorality and impurity can suffocate all manifestations of God within us. We must cleanse our souls, the wells of God’s activity, so that we can be refreshed by the living water of Jesus’ grace.
Let us remain in the sunshine of Jesus’ presence. Only in this way can our love develop and receive heavenly appreciation.
