Old Testament: Isaiah 65:17–25
Gospel: John 4:43–54
Psalm 30:1–6,11–13
“Weeping may spend the night,
but joy comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:6
All the readings for this day are about sickness and health. This line from Psalm 30 really stood out to me because I usually sleep very well. But sometimes, I wake up and feel sad or sick.
In the Gospel today, Jesus arrives in Galilee right after his first miracle of changing water into wine. A father comes to Jesus and says, “Come down before my little boy dies.” Jesus replies to him, “Go; your son will live.” And he heals the child from afar.
I recently had strep throat and I woke up crying in the night because I had a fever and felt so bad. I had a headache and muscle aches. I was sweating and felt nauseous. I went downstairs and woke up my Mom. She gave me Advil and some water, and I went back to bed. When I woke the next morning, my fever had broken, but my throat was very sore, so we went to the doctor.
Almost everyone in the world gets a fever at least once a year. Some fevers are mild, and some are very high, in the 104 - 108-degree range. I read an article from The Atlantic that says through most of history, fever was considered supernatural. People thought it came from the outside to torment the sick person. But really, it is just a rise in temperature, and a way for our body to tell us something is going on like a virus or bacteria attack. Fever can even get our immune system going and help burn off infections. But fever does make you feel terrible.
Back to the Gospel: The dad has faith that what Jesus tells him is true and that his son will live. Near home, his servants meet him with the news that his son is healed. He asks them when the boy began to recover, and they say the fever left him at the very time the man spoke to Jesus.
We don’t know what disease the boy had, or how Jesus cured him from such a distance. But we know it was his second great miracle.
Emmeline Glenn
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