This is the Beginning of the Rest of My Life

They came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, Bartimaeus (the son of Timaeus), a blind beggar, was sitting by the road. When he heard it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out, "Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me!" Many people told him to be quiet but he was crying out all the more, "Have mercy on me, Son of David!"

Jesus stopped and said, "call him."

So they called the blind man and said to him, "Have courage! Get up; He's calling for you." He threw off his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus.

Then Jesus answered him, "What do you want Me to do for you?"

"Rabbouni," the blind man told Him, "I want to see!"

"Go your way, " Jesus told him. "Your faith has healed you." Immediately he could see and began to follow Him on the road. Mark 10:46-52

I wonder if Bartimaeus' story went like this?:

I wasn't always blind. When I was little I could run and play but when I was about 10 clouds came across my eyes. I began to stumble and darkness became my prison. 

I am the only son in my parents home and I was destined to carry on my father's business. The guilt that I was not able to fulfil this destiny ate away at me. 

To help with bringing money into the home I sat on the road and begged, how demeaning! To be spat on, trodden on, treated like dirt, accused of being a sinner.

Do you know how demeaning that was? Yet I did it to eat, to live.

Sitting out there on the road I began to hear of Jesus the Nazarene. He was healing sick people, setting demoniacs free. My prayer was that He would come by on my road. The hunger for that meeting built in me until I thought of nothing else. I imagined how my meeting with Him would be.

Then the day arrived. The crowd was going wild, Jesus had come, He was passing on my road. This was my time. With all that was in me I began to call out, "Jesus Son of David have mercy on me." I annoyed the crowd but I didn't care, I wanted to see, I needed to see.

Then He spoke, "Call him!"

His disciples brought me to Him. His voice, so gentle, so loving. He reached out and touched me and I knew I had touched my help. He asked me what I wanted. He could see, I could not see, but He asked me and I told Him, "I want to see!" He said to me that my faith had healed me and then, immediately I could see Him. What a face, what a smile, what love!

 I had found my Messiah! What joy! What joy! What joy!