In today’s gospel reading we see that no sooner had Jesus landed on the other side of the lake, once again he was surrounded by crowds. They came with their insistent demands. It is human nature that we should come to Jesus to get things from him, for there are so many things that he alone can give. But it is a shame to take and give nothing in return.
Perhaps there are those who simply make use of their friends. There are others who never receive any news unless they want something in return. There are also those who regard other people as existing to help them when they need their help and to be forgotten when they cannot be made use of. There are still those who simply make use of the church. They desire the Church to baptize their children, to marry their young people and bury their dead. Except for these occasions, they seldom see the inside of their church at any other time. It is their unconscious attitude that the Church exists to serve them, but that they have no duty whatever towards the Church.
Then there are those who seek simply to make use of God. They never remember God unless they need him. Their only prayers are requests and even demands made to God. They often regard God as one to be summoned when they need something.
If we examine ourselves, we are all, to some extent, guilty of these things. It would rejoice the heart of Jesus if we came to him to offer our love, our service and our devotion more often, and less often to demand from him the help we need. Today’s gospel reading says that all who touched Jesus were healed. The goal of every Christian should be to become like Christ that when those who suffer touch our lives, they are healed by the presence of Jesus in us.