Isaiah 45:6-8, 18, 21-26 / Luke 7:19-23
Spiritual writers often talk about how a time will come when faith is put to the test, and they will use terms like "when the well runs dry" or "the dark night of the soul" or "the cloud of the unknowing".
It is also a time when the most fundamental and critical questions are asked.
Questions like: What is the meaning of my life? Why is such a bad thing happening to me? Does God really care about me? Are my prayers really being heard?
This "dark night of the soul" cuts across all and no one is spared, from saints to sinners.
In today's gospel, we heard of the dark night of the soul of John the Baptist.
In the darkness of his prison cell and the even darker uncertainty of his existence and mission, he had tough questions to ask.
So is Jesus the Messiah or not? If He is then why doesn't He make it clear and get me out of here?
We too will have our dark night of the soul, and we too will have our scorching questions.
And when there seemed to be no answers, then maybe the 1st reading will give us some consolation.
The prophet Isaiah tells us that everything is in God's hands, and from the Lord alone will come strength and victory.
Our moments of clarity and confusion are like the cycle of day and night.
Through all these moments, we must learn to depend on the Lord and put our faith in Him alone and turn to Him for strength.
Even if there seemed to be no answers to our questions and the dark night is a prolonged one, let us continue to wait for the Lord with hope.
When the Lord comes, may He find us waiting in faith.