“And the blind man said to him, ‘Rabbi, let me recover my sight.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” (Mark 10:52)
This is perhaps the last miracle Jesus performed before He entered Jerusalem to suffer and die for the sins of the world. And the blind man, Bartimaeus, is the only named person Jesus healed. Bartimaeus demonstrated great faith as he called out to Jesus. His call was persistent as he had to shout to be heard over the voices telling him to be silent. He knew that Jesus was His only hope to be healed. He knew that Jesus would not turn him away, so He persisted and was blessed with restoration of his sight. And so great was his faith and thanksgiving that he followed Jesus immediately. He did not care about anything else but that.
The Lord blesses His children with many things. He gives us talents and abilities through which He helps us to supply our families with food, clothing, and shelter. To many He has given more than they need in order that they may share what they have with the poor and oppressed. And of course we have even greater gifts: forgiveness of sins, faith, and eternal life. And we should thank Him for them all as they resolve the major concerns of life for us: sin, meaning, purpose, and mortality, issues which people who do not know Jesus struggle all their lives to find. And the resolution of these matters is given to us! But people in the world strive for such enlightenment. Their struggles are quite visible to us as we see them portrayed in the media and on our streets. They lash out with violence, intolerance, virtue shaming, and cancel culture. Would that they knew that they can come to Jesus by faith and find rest from their anxieties and labors. And so it it is the calling of every believer to bring that message to them, to follow Jesus in preaching the gospel to those who need to hear it. We thank God for calling us by faith, not merit or works. So we should be grateful to share His blessings with others.