Today's readings remind us that all the gifts we have received come to us from God. Wisdom is a gift of the spirit as are the gifts of faith and the gift of healing given by Jesus to His apostles. Sometimes we forget that there is someone greater than ourselves at work in our lives and we often depend on our own strength.

In today's Gospel reading we see that the disciples are unable to cast out the demon from the young boy even though they had been given authority to cast out evil spirits. Jesus rebukes them for their lack of faith. Perhaps like the desperate father who so earnestly pleads for healing for his son, they need to admit their own powerlessness and turn to God for help. Jesus reminds them of the need of prayer for this type of healing.

When we ponder the gifts of God's creation, the beauty and magnificence of all He has made and the wonder of our own creation, we realize the wisdom and power of God at work in our world. We realize how small we ourselves are and yet God has shared with us all these gifts to continue to carry on the work He has begun.