“Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ He replied, ‘How can I, unless someone instructs me?’ So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.” (Acts 8:30-31)
The Ethiopian, whom Philip met on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza, must have been a great and knowledgeable man, since he served as the Nubian queen’s treasurer. Though he was a man of position, he was also humble. He readily admitted that he did not understand what he was reading in the Book of Isaiah and needed someone to help him discern its meaning. Philip explained the scripture to the Ethiopian and helped him to understand how it applied to Jesus. Ultimately, Philip baptized the Ethiopian and continued on his way home rejoicing.
The Ethiopian, whom Philip met on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza, must have been a great and knowledgeable man, since he served as the Nubian queen’s treasurer. Though he was a man of position, he was also humble. He readily admitted that he did not understand what he was reading in the Book of Isaiah and needed someone to help him discern its meaning. Philip explained the scripture to the Ethiopian and helped him to understand how it applied to Jesus. Ultimately, Philip baptized the Ethiopian and continued on his way home rejoicing.
How often do I hesitate to ask for help because I think that if I do, it will make me seem less of a man, weak, incompetent or incapable? My pride gets in the way, so I begrudgingly perform tasks and sulk about no one helping me. I become my own worst enemy. Even our Lord Jesus Christ accepted the help of Simon of Cyrene in carrying His cross on His way to Calvary. I am a man of no position and a sinner, and yet I do not know how to ask for help or accept it when offered. Help is a gift that should be freely and lovingly given, and graciously and humbly accepted. Many times I have prayed for God’s help during the trials along my life’s journey. The type of help I expected was for the trial to go away and life to be good again. Instead, His help came in quiet and subtle ways: a word of encouragement from a friend, words from scripture, a small act of kindness from a stranger. These acts strung together would eventually help to lead me through the rough and dark times and into rejoicing.
Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth – in a word, to know himself, so that by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves. – Saint John Paul II
God our Father is always there to support and sustain us, and we should never hesitate to seek His help even though it may come in unexpected ways. But in order for us to hear His counsels, we must be open to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to lead us in this life toward ultimately rejoicing with our Risen Lord in eternity.
Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth – in a word, to know himself, so that by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves. – Saint John Paul II
God our Father is always there to support and sustain us, and we should never hesitate to seek His help even though it may come in unexpected ways. But in order for us to hear His counsels, we must be open to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to lead us in this life toward ultimately rejoicing with our Risen Lord in eternity.