Never be afraid to ask!

“Pay attention to what I am telling you. The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” But they did not understand this saying; its meaning was hidden from them so that they should not understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.  (Luke 9:44-45)

Jesus told His Apostles to “pay attention to what I am telling you.”  And then began to explain He would suffer and die.  But they didn’t get it.  So why was the meaning of this “hidden from them?”  They didn’t understand what He meant and “they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.”

They didn’t need to be afraid.  Jesus wasn’t offended by their lack of understanding.  He realized that they wouldn’t immediately understand.  But this didn’t stop Him from telling them anyway, because He knew that they would come to understand in time.  They understood once the Holy Spirit descended upon them leading them into all Truth (Acts 2:1–31).  It took the workings of the Holy Spirit to understand such deep mysteries.

The same is true with us.  When we face the mystery of Jesus’ sufferings, and when we face the reality of suffering in our own lives or the lives of those we love, we can often be confused at first.  It takes a gift from the Holy Spirit to open our minds to understand.  Suffering is most often inevitable.  We all endure it.  And if we don’t allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, suffering will lead us to confusion and despair.  But if we do allow the Holy Spirit to open our minds, we’ll begin to understand how God can work in us through our sufferings just as He brought salvation to the world through the sufferings of Christ.

We may not always understand why life is unfolding in certain ways, but we’re asked to "pay attention" to what God has taught us in our youth and as we experience life.  When we "pay attention" to what God has taught us and "pay attention" to what others are saying or doing we’re advised to bring these life experiences to God.  In our prayer, our reflection, our discernment, God will give us  insight, understanding, the ability to forgive, or move in a new direction, if we’re not afraid to ask God to give us what we need and then to "pay attention" to what happens next.