The Seven Mile Walk

~~~Third Sunday of Easter ~~~

~~Acts of the Apostles 2:14, 22-33~~~Psalm 16~~

~~1 Peter 1:17-21~~~Luke 24:13-35~~

The Lonesome Walk to Emmaus. The Longest Seven Mile Walk.

Lord, you will show us the path of life.

To some of my friends a seven mile walk would not be that far,
but  am not sure I would be able to complete such a distance.

This story is not about the distance...it is not about the two who were walking;
it is about Jesus seeking them out after his resurrection.
Throughout the public ministry of Jesus people were constantly
seeking him and following him about the country side.

But since his Resurrection we see him seeking those who loved him...
those who tried in their own way to believe.
They may have wanted to believe that he would be raised from the dead,
but when he was laid in the tomb it all seemed to be so final.
Even when they discover the empty tomb it is still so hard to believe.

So Jesus comes to them. He comes to them,
not because he has something to prove, but because he loves them.
His love then was not any greater then his love is today for you and for me.

He comes to us in the same intimate way
every time we attend Mass and receive his precious body and blood.

He seeks us out...he wants to walk with us...he wants to reveal his love to us.

Are we paying attention?
Are we missing his presence?
Do we believe enough?

It took more than the seven mile walk
before the two could recognize who had joined them.

Perhaps they were looking down at the ground.
Jesus was by their side...he was walking with them.
Did they ever actually look at his face?

They walked all the way home
before his actions of breaking the bread opened their eyes.

They were back in their own little world, in the privacy of their home.

Jesus says, 'oh, by the way, it's me....Jesus'
and he breaks the bread.
They see his hands holding the bread.
They hear him speak the familiar words of blessing
and then they knew.

Now they had renewed energy...
the seven miles back was the walk of exhilaration.

They could not contain their joy.

Jesus had walked with them, he had found them,
he had blessed them...he had filled them with his joy.

He is walking beside you.
Peace.

He Drew Near

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 3:1-10 ~~~ Psalm 105 ~~~ Luke 24:13-35 ~~~

The walk to Emmaus is such a beautiful story.
Jesus meets Cleopas and his companion where they are on their journey.

Jesus himself drew near and walked with them...

They have been walking seven miles now.
They walk in silence because they have lost some of their hope.
They walk in silence as they return home wondering what they will do next.
How are they to carry forward with what they have seen
and learned from Jesus?

Eventually they begin to speak about what had happened to Jesus.
How could he have been arrested, convicted, and crucified?
How could this happen to one so good?
Why did things not turn out as they had expected?

Does any of this sound familiar to you?
I am guessing it does.
I can relate to disappointments in life.
Sometimes things do not turn out like we thought they would.

Jesus not only walked with these two, but he also listened
to their sad expression of the past events.

He spoke of what had to be in his unique compassionate way.

He remained with them until they reached their home.
He entered their home. He sat down at the table with them.

He used something familiar to reveal himself before their very eyes.

They recognized him in the breaking of the bread.
It was this action of breaking the bread,
not the burning in their hearts.
The burning of their hearts was only connected
 to the presence of Jesus after the fact.

How many times can we too look back on an event
only later to realize its real significance.

These two longed for Jesus to stay with them,
but he vanished leaving them with joy.

Now they could return to Jerusalem light-hearted...
with a spring in their step.
They were bringing the good news of the Lord's Resurrection.

They returned to share their story.
They came to discover the others stories.

We each have our story of the living Jesus.
Share yours and you will be Blessed.
He is with you always,
even when you do not recognize him.
Peace.