Reflection
Our Gospel today recalls Jesus ascending a mountain and appointing the twelve men to be his Apostles. This was one of many “mountain top” experiences the Apostles would have with Jesus.
When Jesus embarked on his mission he chose twelve men for the task of preaching the kingdom of God and healing the sick in the power of that kingdom. In the choice of the twelve, we see a characteristic feature of God's work: Jesus chose very ordinary people. They were non-professionals, who had no wealth or position. They were chosen from the common people who did ordinary things, had no special education, and no social advantages. Jesus wanted ordinary people who could take an assignment and do it extraordinarily well. He chose these men, not for what they were, but for what they would be capable of becoming under his direction and power.
We may think that we don’t have much in common with the Apostles. But the most important thing for us to know is that Jesus chooses us first. He gives us the choice to follow Him, but He has already chosen us to be his disciples. We are chosen to be part of His mission to spread the Gospel to others. Like the Apostles, Jesus chooses us despite our personality or character flaws. He chooses us despite how we differ from other disciples. Imagine the apostles, having been chosen, looking at each other, and James and John turning to Andrew and asking, "Who's this Thaddeus guy?" They could well have been uneasy at rubbing shoulders with a reformed tax collector like Matthew, and a fanatical nationalist like Simon. We may have difficulties with the personalities and faults of other followers of Jesus. But they are chosen, with their faults, just as we are.
When the Lord calls us to serve, we must not have doubts because we think that we have little or nothing to offer. The Lord takes what ordinary people, like us, can offer and uses it for greatness in his kingdom.
Today’s Question for Prayer and Reflection
Do you make your life an offering to the Lord and allow him to use you as he sees fit?
Source for today’s reflection: https://epriest.com/reflections/view/3312