In todays readings, Tobits family and that of Sarahs are destined to be linked. God heals their pain and rescues them. Not only has Tobit been exiled to Assyria with other Israelites, but he also suffers what seemed to be a cruel and unjust accident. Sarahs suffering is that she has married seven husbands, but a demon has slain each of them on their wedding night. She has to bear the pain and shame of this, and, like Tobit, wishes to die. But again, like Tobit, her faith in God does not waver.
We can all take heart from the stories of Tobit and Sarah. Like all of us, they had suffering and struggle to go through in their lives. But they never lost faith in Gods loving providence and their faith was eventually rewarded.
It is easy for us to give way to despair in times of trouble. We may see no way out of our problems and God may seem absent when we most need him. This is when we need to proclaim our faith that God loves us, cares for us, and wants to help us in our suffering. Something good can come out of misfortunes in ways that we cannot foresee. God hears our prayers for help, just as he heard those of Tobit and Sarah. He may not seem to answer at once or in the way that we would like him to answer our prayers, but we can be sure that He hears us and loves us.