Stop Pretending You Are Fine

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In today’s Gospel, we see a blind beggar named Bartimaeus sitting on the roadside while Jesus passes by. And honestly, Bartimaeus is surrounded by the kind of people we still meet today. People who tell him to be quiet. People who think he is a disturbance. People who believe he should stay where he is.

But Bartimaeus does something bold: he shouts louder. “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” And I think the point of this Gospel is: Sometimes the greatest miracle begins when you stop pretending you are fine. Because Bartimaeus is blind, yes. But at least he knows he is blind. That sounds obvious, but spiritually, that is huge. A lot of us walk through life spiritually blind while pretending we can see perfectly. We hide our wounds, our addictions, our bitterness our loneliness, our fear. We become experts at looking “okay.” And meanwhile Bartimaeus just cries out publicly: “I need help.”

The crowd tries to silence him, but Jesus stops for him. And then Jesus asks him this question: “What do you want Me to do for you?” I mean… he is blind. Isn’t it obvious? But Jesus still asks. Because God does not force healing. He invites honesty. And I wonder if that question makes us uncomfortable because we spend so much time avoiding the truth about ourselves.

What do you actually want Jesus to do for you? Not the religious or the safe answer. The real answer. Do you want Him to heal your marriage? Your anxiety? Your anger? Your loneliness? Your shame? Your inability to forgive? Your fear of failure?

When Jesus calls him, the Gospel says Bartimaeus throws aside his cloak and runs to Him. That cloak mattered. For a beggar, it was security. Protection. Identity. And before Bartimaeus even receives his sight, he lets go of the thing he used to survive. That takes trust. Maybe the reason we struggle to run toward Jesus is because we are still clutching our cloak. The thing we think we cannot live without.

But healing often begins when surrender begins. And then comes the miracle. “Master, I want to see.” Immediately, Bartimaeus recovers his sight. But the greatest detail is at the very end: “He followed Him on the way.” That is the point of every miracle – Discipleship. Jesus does not just heal Bartimaeus so he can go back to his old life. Jesus heals him so he can finally follow.

And that is the invitation for us too. Not just: “Jesus, fix my problems.” But: “Jesus, remove whatever keeps me from following You fully.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, sometimes I pretend I can see when I am actually lost. Give me the humility of Bartimaeus – the courage to cry out to You honestly. Help me let go of whatever keeps me from running toward You. Open my eyes this day, not only to see Your presence, but to follow You faithfully on the road ahead. Amen.

– Homily by Rev Fr Patrick Agbeko