Matthew 8:8
The centurion said in reply, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed."
"Or maybe it's just a miracle," blurted my spiritual director when I explained about the sudden disappearance of a tumor from my mother's shoulder.
I had been telling Father about the circumstances of the cancer scare and how the doctors were trying to make sense of her unforeseen recovery. Naturally, our whole family had also been doing a lot of praying. I'd long understood that God answers all our petitions. He simply doesn't always answer them with a "yes." It's the things that bring us closer to him – those are the petitions he unfailingly says "yes" to.
And yet, God is God. He *does* have the power and authority to grant our every request. The centurion in today's reading had total faith in that authority. In my desire to grasp why some petitions are granted and not others – to explain why God sometimes says "no" – had my faith in God's supreme authority begun to dull?
Even amid gratitude to the Lord, we can find ourselves explaining away the wondrous workings of his will. Sometimes we need to simply recognize God's authority and with joy confess that "maybe it's just a miracle!"
Get to know our seminarians! Today's reflection was written by:
Donald Amodeo, Pastoral Year
Home parish: St. Mary's
Did you know...
Donald Amodeo is in his fifth year of seminary formation and is currently assigned to St. Paul's Catholic Church in St. Pete. He is the author of the afterlife adventure: Dead & Godless.
Pray with us for the men and women discerning the priesthood and religious life. To pray for our seminarians by name or to find out more about the Diocese of St. Petersburg vocations office, click here.
