Mark 10:46–52: Faith That Shouts
Picture the scene. A dusty roadside outside Jericho. A crowd buzzing with curiosity—some craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the wonder-worker from Nazareth, others just tagging along because something might happen. And there, sitting on the edge of all the action, is Bartimeus—blind, ignored, dismissed. But not silent. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” It’s not a polite prayer. It’s raw. Loud. Disruptive. The crowd hisses for him to quiet down. After all, decorum is the death of desperation. But Bartimaeus knows something they don’t: sometimes faith has to shout. Sometimes it must raise its voice against the polite indifference of the world—and even against the inner voices that whisper, You don’t matter. You shouldn’t bother him. But he does bother him. And Jesus stops. The Son of God halts an entire procession for the cry of one man. That’s the Gospel in miniature right there—divine attention turned toward human need. Then comes that piercing question: “What do you want me to do for you?”It sounds obvious. But it isn’t. Because Jesus isn’t guessing at needs; he’s inviting Bartimaeus to name his desire. He’s restoring dignity by giving choice. The healing begins not when sight returns, but when the man speaks his longing aloud. “I want to see.” And he does. But notice what happens next. The story doesn’t end with vision—it ends with following. Bartimaeus doesn’t just receive sight; he joins the journey. Grace doesn’t leave us sitting by the roadside—it pulls us into the Way. So maybe today, the question comes to us too: What do you want me to do for you?Can you name it? Can you risk saying it out loud, even if your voice trembles? Because sometimes the holiest prayer you’ll ever pray is the one you dare to shout. Prayer Lord Jesus,you stopped for a man the world had silenced.Stop for me, too.Let me hear your question again—“What do you want me to do for you?”Give me courage to name my need,faith to call out even when others hush me,and eyes to see you clearlyon the road that lies ahead.Amen.
