For the past two Sundays, the Lectionary gave us glimpses into the lives of people with whom Jesus has an encounter. To recap: two weeks ago, Jesus converses with a Samaritan woman and invites her to a new way of living. Last week, we heard about the man born blind – more than, his blindness was healed in this encounter. Today, we encounter Mary, Martha and their late brother, Lazarus. All three stories share a commonality in that we encounter people who come to understand who Jesus is. All three show us how to be “artisans of hope in our blessed and broken world.”