"We have seen strange things today..."

In the gospel reading from Luke appointed for today, Jesus heals a man with leprosy, then he heals a man who has been lowered through the roof because the crowd was so large, and then a paralyzed man to whom he said, "Stand up and take your bed and go to your home," and he

did just what Jesus said and off he went.

After those three miraculous healings, Luke says "Amazement seized all of them, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, 'We have seen strange things today.'"

We don't know who "all of them" referred to, but I venture to say that the pharisees were in that group. I certainly know that the pharisaical part of my heart is filled with awe when I am confronted with a healing or a transformation I had not imagined possible.

Watch for the strange things; listen for the miracles. We are encompassed by the infinite abyss of the presence of God, a Love that pierces the darkness of our insides. Even with tightly squeezed closed eyes, the Light is there, and we cannot help but be amazed!