Ezekiel 471-9, 12 / John 5:1-3, 5-16
It is difficult to see any good in a bad and depressive situation, just as it is difficult to imagine that a beautiful butterfly can come from an ugly caterpillar.
Much more difficult it will be to see or even imagine anything glorious coming up from something that is destroyed.
In the 1st reading, the prophet Ezekiel gave a vision of the Temple from which life-giving and healing waters flow.
But the problem was that just a few years back, the Temple had been destroyed and now Israel is in exile in Babylon.
But that prophetic vision was fulfilled when Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross, and He became the Temple of God, and from His side flowed blood and water which symbolized life and healing.
That prophetic vision strengthens us when our faith wavers and we lose hope in a situation of turmoil and depression.
Because in a seemingly hopeless and despairing situation of being nailed to the cross, Jesus still issued forth His life-giving and healing grace.
This grace is given to us whenever we meet with struggles and difficulties, so that we can look forward with faith and hope to the glory of the resurrection.
Jesus is not just our Healer. He is our Saviour who leads us to see the beauty in the ugly and victory over vice.