Six-year-old Andrew Bateson came down with bacterial
meningitis, an aggressive disease that almost cost the little boy his life.
In order to save Andrew, doctors had to amputate his legs where the
disease had destroyed his circulatory system. Andrew was devastated
when he discovered what had happened to him; Andrew couldn’t
understand why he couldn’t have his “old legs back”.
His mother, Rebecca, wasn’t doing much better. She tried to keep
up a positive disposition for her son—but she wondered how Andrew
would handle the next chapter.
And she felt betrayed—betrayed by God.
After months of agonizing rehabilitation with his new prosthetic
legs, Andrew finally went home.
Then one night at supper, out of nowhere, Andrew said, “I saw
God, Mommy. I was sleeping at the hospital. He put his arms out, and
I thought he was going to give me a hug. But instead he just touched
me on the shoulder”.
His mother steeled herself. “Did God say anything?”
“No, he was just….there”.
A chill ran down his mother’s spine. Rebecca writes: “[God] was
just there. What did that mean? I looked at Andrew, wolfing down his
dinner. For months I had seen a handicapped child, a damaged child,
fighting as hard as he could, failing more often than succeeding in his
rehab. Falling down, unable to master his new legs. Yet, unlike me,
never turning bitter, never giving up. “I’m going to walk, I’m going to
ride my bike”, he’d insist, “You just watch”.
And Rebecca realized: “Andrew came through this better that I
have. He was moving on. I was stuck in my bitterness and sense of
betrayal…Had God been there all along for me too, and I was just too
angry to see? Was he there for me now? Lord, thank you for being
with Andrew. Be with me now, too”.
In closing, remember this: The Risen Christ is here, in our midst,
in the love of family and friends, in the care of doctors and nurses, in
the support of pastors and ministers, in the wisdom of teachers and
counselors. The disciples on the road to Emmaus finally realize his
presence in the breaking of bread; Rebecca finally grasps God’s
presence in the unshakable, determined faith of her little boy. Every
one of us has traveled the road the two disciples walked on Easter night;
many of us have made the journey that Andrew and his mom and dad
traveled. It is the road of deep disappointment, sadness, despair, anger.
But God assures us, in his Easter promise, that along those roads he will
make himself known to us. If our eyes are open, we will meet him in
his Christ: in the compassion and generosity of others, in the breaking
of bread and the healing touch of the sacraments, in the grace and
wisdom of his Spirit in our midst. May our hearts and consciences
always be open to behold the presence of Christ, our guest and
companion along the many roads we walk to our own Emmauses.
His mother asked, “Did God say anything?” Andrew answered,
“No….He was just there”!
Tags: 4-23-2023