Begin with the end in mind: your name written in heaven

Good morning!  I hope you are all enjoying your summer and taking some time to get away for a change of scenery.  Who has taken a trip or is planning on taking a trip this summer?  If the purpose of your trip is recreation or relaxation its something we look forward to.   If you are traveling for a job or school you may not be that excited. It may not be exactly where you want to go and may be hard work, but you do it because you’re on a mission, you have a goal to reach.   When going on a trip like this some extra motivation helps to get through it.  We do the work because we’re getting a reward: a paycheck, bonus, promotion, or to finish a degree.  We get in the right frame of mind to do the job by beginning with the end in mind, being focused on the reward that is to come.  Athletes are a good example of being able to do this. 

In today’s readings Jesus sends his disciples out and tells them it’s going to be hard and dangerous work.    He needs laborers for the harvest, but there just aren’t enough.   Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.   The people in the towns along the way had the seed planted in them in about the coming messiah through many of Israel’s prophets.   Jesus coming in the flesh was the beginning of God’s kingdom in the world, but many in Israel didn’t know it.  The word had to go out that Jesus was here to fulfill their expectations and the disciples were to help get the word out. In our gospel Jesus painted a picture that sounded very challenging to the seventy-two disciples. They were to take no provisions and were being sent out like lambs among wolves. Traveling outside of where you were known was quite dangerous during Jesus’ time and your life was at risk.  I’m sure some of Jesus’ disciples were willing to help, but after hearing this they may have had second thoughts.

Two thousand years later we have similar challenges.   Jesus still needs laborers for the harvest.  There’s barely enough clergy to support the Church, and they have very limited time to spend harvesting new believers.    There is a trend in our culture that God is no longer relevant. Society seems to condemn any public acknowledgement of God or any good works done in His name.  There is much work to be done, isn’t there?

Back to our Gospel, even though Jesus presents a challenge for the disciples, he also gives them encouragement.     He chose seventy-two disciples, but he doesn’t send them out alone: they are sent in pairs so they can support each other.   Jesus also tells them he will be visiting the towns they visit.   They don’t have to do all the work: they just need to prepare for Jesus’ coming.   The disciples are co-operators in God’s plan.  Once they arrive they are to offer the greeting, “peace to this household”, which was a sign of the times for the coming messiah.    Jesus said some of the people would receive the message and extend hospitality.   The disciples were given power by Jesus to cure the sick and proclaim, “The kingdom of God is at hand”, which would help reinforce the belief that Jesus is the messiah.  

Jesus told them that others would not receive their message or extend hospitality, which was an insult.  The disciples were to return the insult by shaking the dust off their feet, but still proclaiming, “The Kingdom of God is at hand”. And they were to give a warning that it would be more tolerable for Sodom, than the people of that town.    This warning was familiar to the Jews of the time. They knew that Sodom was destroyed by fire because of its sinful ways.     This would provide food for thought for when Jesus comes to their town.

The disciples were given great encouragement upon their return.  

They were excited about curing the sick that “demons are subject to them because of the name of Jesus”.   Once again, Jesus has the last word.  He tells them that they shouldn’t rejoice because of this power, but because their names are written in heaven.  This was the ultimate goal – eternal salvation.  By listening to and following Jesus, they were given the greatest gift – eternal life.  He didn’t measure success by their accomplishments, but that they did what he asked - proclaiming the Kingdom of God.  The disciples were preparing, so Jesus could finish the job.

We too can be faithful disciples of Jesus in our own time.   We don’t need to go it alone.  We can work together to proclaim the kingdom, as husband and wife, sister and brother, or friends.   There are plenty of people to proclaim the Kingdom of God to:  our family, friends, co-workers, classmates, and at times even strangers.  We can do this through the power that Jesus has given us through the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist.   The Church has plenty of potential laborers – it takes more than all the clergy and religious:  it takes all of us here!   We just need to be ready to work and proclaim, “Peace to this household” and “the Kingdom of God is at hand” when the time is right.   We do this by our joyful words and also our actions in our daily lives.   This parish is good example of making known “the Kingdom of God is at hand” through our good works such as the mission trip to Appalachia, St. Clare’s Harvest food pantry, Youth service at Wolf camp, and many more ministries.  It doesn’t have to be some grandiose feat that grabs headlines and impacts thousands.   All we need to is live out our lives as disciples of Jesus with the people we are with each day. And make the Kingdom of God known to them by our joy. Why? Because we have the greatest gift of all: that our names are written in heaven.   So begin each day with the end in mind by saying a simple prayer:  ‘Dear Jesus, I want to be your disciple; I want to be a co-worker with you in the harvest, doing your work.  May my name be written in heaven.’ May our Lord bless you!             

Do you know of any prophets today?

The readings from the 13^th Sunday of Ordinary time focused on the call of Elisha to succeed the great prophet Elijah.   Father Vince used some visuals to help set the stage: an umbrella, sunscreen, and insect repellant.   These are all items that provide protection.   In the readings Elijah placed his cloak on Elisha to signify he was being called to succeed him.   Father Vince told us that a person's cloak was very important to people of the time.  A cloak was used primarily as a form of protection from the elements to keep warm or to protect from the rain.  It had several other uses such as bedding, or to wrap belongings to take on a journey.  A cloak was very important to people of Elijah’s time. Elisha must have been someone special in order for Elijah to give his cloak to him.  

Elisha was special, being called by God to succeed Elijah as prophet.  He initially hesitated, asking to kiss his mother and father goodbye.  But after some stern words from Elijah, Elisha made the choice to give up his former way of life, by slaughtering his oxen and cooking them over the fire made from his plow.   The plow and oxen was Elisha’s, livelihood, but in answering the call he realized he had more important things to as a prophet for God.

What does a prophet do? A prophet is a messenger for God.  A prophet listens to God’s word, proclaims it, and calls people to religious devotion.  Father Vince asked if we knew any prophets today.  This was a trick question.  His answer was that we could all be prophets.  How can we do this?  

1)    By listening to God’s word.  We can do this by carefully paying attention to the homily and prayers at Mass.  We can also dig a little deeper and studying the Bible and teachings of the Church.  We can also listen to God in the silence of our prayer.  

2)    By proclaiming God’s teachings.  We can do this by sharing with others, in a loving way, what we have learned by listening to God.   We can do this with people close to us with our families, in the workplace, at play, and in service to others.  We can do this both by our words and actions.   In a world that seems to be turning away from God this is very important.

3)    Calling people to religious devotion.  The core of our religious devotion is celebration of the Eucharist where Christ is present.   We can first make it a top priority in our own lives to attend Mass every Sunday.  We can also invite others to attend Mass with us and let them know the joy it brings us.  A personal invitation to family and friends who may have been away from the Church are a good place to start.    If they’ve been away they may need some joy in their lives.  Let them know you want them to share the same joy you experience.

Pray to God for the strength to put these ideas that Father Vince shared with us into practice and be a prophet for God.  May God bless you.