First Reading: 1 Kings 17: 17-24
Elijah went to Zarephath of Sidon to the house of a widow.
The son of the mistress of the house fell sick,
and his sickness grew more severe until he stopped breathing.
So she said to Elijah,
“Why have you done this to me, O man of God?
Have you come to me to call attention to my guilt
and to kill my son?”
Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.”
Taking him from her lap, he carried the son to the upper room
where he was staying, and put him on his bed.
Elijah called out to the LORD:
“O LORD, my God,
will you afflict even the widow with whom I am staying
by killing her son?”
Then he stretched himself out upon the child three times
and called out to the LORD:
“O LORD, my God,
let the life breath return to the body of this child.”
The LORD heard the prayer of Elijah;
the life breath returned to the child’s body and he revived.
Taking the child, Elijah brought him down into the house
from the upper room and gave him to his mother.
Elijah said to her, “See! Your son is alive.”
The woman replied to Elijah,
“Now indeed I know that you are a man of God.
The word of the LORD comes truly from your mouth.”
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13
R. (2a) I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
I will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear
and did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O LORD, you brought me up from the nether world;
you preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Sing praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger lasts but a moment;
a lifetime, his good will.
At nightfall, weeping enters in,
but with the dawn, rejoicing.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Hear, O LORD, and have pity on me;
O LORD, be my helper.
You changed my mourning into dancing;
O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Second Reading: Gal 1:11-14a, 15ac, 16a, 17, 19
I want you to know, brothers and sisters,
that the gospel preached by me is not of human origin.
For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it,
but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
For you heard of my former way of life in Judaism,
how I persecuted the Church of God beyond measure
and tried to destroy it, and progressed in Judaism
beyond many of my contemporaries among my race.
But when God, who from my mother’s womb had set me apart
was pleased to reveal his Son to me,
so that I might proclaim him to the Gentiles,
I went into Arabia and then returned to Damascus.
Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem
to talk with Cephas and remained with him for fifteen days.
But I did not see any other of the Apostles,
only James the brother of the Lord.
Gospel: Luke 7: 11-17
Jesus journeyed to a city called Nain,
and his disciples and a large crowd accompanied him.
As he drew near to the gate of the city,
a man who had died was being carried out,
the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.
A large crowd from the city was with her.
When the Lord saw her,
he was moved with pity for her and said to her,
“Do not weep.”
He stepped forward and touched the coffin;
at this the bearers halted,
and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”
The dead man sat up and began to speak,
and Jesus gave him to his mother.
Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, crying out
“A great prophet has arisen in our midst, “
and “God has visited his people.”
This report about him spread through the whole of Judea
and in all the surrounding region.
NAB
I remember a few years ago lying in bed mourning a particularly bad break up. I tried to read my Bible but nothing stuck. I sat with a journal on my lap but no words came. I wanted to reach out to a friend, but I wondered what anyone could say that would help. In those early morning hours, I could almost feel my hope ebbing away.
In today’s Gospel, it’s easy to imagine the hopelessness of the widow. She had already lost her husband and now she has to bury her only child. With his death, she has also lost her livelihood and will now be completely dependent upon the charity of others. Is she hysterical with grief or totally resigned, only a shell of herself?
It is in this moment of deep despair that the Gospel tells us Jesus saw her. He saw the desperate nature of her circumstances. He saw her grief. He saw her broken heart and He was moved with pity. Jesus didn’t hesitate. He spoke up. He walked over. He touched the coffin. He resurrected more than her son; He resurrected her hope.
Just as Jesus saw the widow’s sorrow and need, He sees ours. Yes, Jesus sees you, sister. He sees your suffering, your struggle, your situation. And just like with the widow at Nain, Jesus walks unflinchingly into the mess of our lives. No heart is too broken, no situation too hopeless, no soul too lost. Jesus sees you and He wants to restore your hope.
As I sat on the edge of my bed that morning, I struggled to find something steady to hold onto in a sea of jumbled emotions. And then a single inspired thought cut through the fog: all is not lost. Those four words were the single spark that reignited my hope.
Our God is a God of Restoration. I don’t know what yours will look like, but I know it is coming. And I’m here to tell you, dear sisters, that all is not lost. Hope is everything.
I’m here to tell you, dear sisters, that all is not lost. Hope is everything.Click to tweet
Is there some situation, relationship, or past heartache that you fear is beyond repair? Tell Jesus about it. Don't worry about a solution; just allow Him to be with you and to comfort you.
Beth Davis is a lover of Jesus, an aunt to five beautiful humans, and a full time youth minister in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is passionate about winning the hearts of young people for Jesus through discipleship.
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