Tobit died peacefully at the age of a hundred and twelve, and received an honorable burial in Nineveh. He was sixty-two years old when he lost his eyesight, and after he recovered it he lived in prosperity, giving alms and continually blessing God and praising the divine Majesty. (Tobit 14:1-2)

Fifty years before Tobit had prayed, "Lord, command me to be delivered from such anguish; let me go to the everlasting abode; Lord, refuse me not. For it is better for me to die than to endure so much misery in life."

What had seemed beyond endurance was endured. More than that, the anguish of Tobit and Sarah became a healing pathway to a fuller relationship with God and one another. Each opened themselves to God. God responded.

The misery is real. We live in a wounded world. The injustice of Golgotha persists. But in partnership with God it is not the end. On the cross Jesus shared our agony. From this darkness God brought forth a great light.