Begin with two minutes of stillness and silence before God.

Matthew 21 is a huge turning point in the Gospel story. Jesus and His followers march into Jerusalem, where the stage will be set for His arrest and crucifixion. Before we get there, however, Matthew includes a seemingly insignificant story at the end of chapter 20. I think it is anything but insignificant, however.

Two blind men were sitting by the side of the road outside of Jericho. No doubt they were there to beg travelers coming in and out of the city for money. This was probably the only thing their life consisted of. Sitting outside the city begging. No real hope of improved quality of life. Winning looked like simply surviving another day.

That is, until they heard about Jesus. Maybe it was the commotion of the crowd following Jesus. Maybe it was a random passerby. Somehow, these two blind men heard that Jesus, the Son of God, would be passing by their little corner where they barely carved out an existence of life.

Even though they could not see it, they heard hope was coming. Even though they could not see it, they acted upon that hope. They began crying out for forgiveness and for healing, with no real way of knowing if they would be heard or seen. They couldn’t even really know that they were shouting in the right direction. I’m sure on some level, they felt foolish shouting into the darkness. But how could they not give hope a chance?

Maybe you think that simply surviving another day is the best life you will experience. Stuck out in the cold, feeling like nothing is ever going to change. You want to see hope, but truthfully, all you see is darkness. Even if you can’t see hope coming, I want you to hear about it.

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:6.

If it ain’t good, God’s not done. Even if you can’t see it, hope is here.

Take two minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflections:

• Is there a place in your life where you need hope? Spend time praying that God will help you see the good He is working.