And they heard the sound of the Lord God, walking in the garden. Genesis 3:8
Can you imagine what it must have been like in the garden of Eden, before sin entered the world? Adam and Eve got to literally hang out with God all day long, face to face. They got to take walks with him, check out the animals, enjoy the beautiful plants. I imagine Adam and Eve and God, all dipping their toes in the waters of the river. The relationship they had with Him was one of complete communion, total intimacy, free from all hindrances.
And then sin came. Now I’m no theologian, so I’m not going to grapple with the question of why sin was allowed to enter the world. But it was. Can you imagine how devastating it must have been for Adam and Eve when that intimate relationship with God was broken and they were cast out of the garden and away from His presence? They were made to toil, and to feel pain, and to experience shame. Every day since then we, as humankind, have lived in a fallen world. There is pain, there is suffering, bad things happen to good people, and our sin prevents us from having the perfect relationship with God that our souls long for and that we were created for.
But God had a plan, from the beginning, a plan to restore that broken relationship. And that plan was Jesus.
Jesus sets right everything that went wrong because of sin.
In the Gospel today we see Jesus healing a man who is deaf and can’t speak. He takes what is broken and makes it whole. It is a reminder to us that, yes, He brings physical healing, but more than that He brings spiritual healing to our broken souls. And by giving his own life He repairs our relationship with God the Father. Do you feel a million miles away from God because of sin? Do you know that Jesus wants to heal you and have an intimate relationship with you? Go to Him, He longs to heal and restore.
Use these familiar words from the Mass to ask Jesus for His healing today: Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.
Anna Coyne is a wife, mother, knitter, gardener, and convert to the Catholic faith. Read more about her here.
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