Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter, first say,
‘Peace to this household.’
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves his payment.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'” (Lk 10:1-9)
Today is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
He was a great man in the life of the Church who introduced his followers to his love: “Lady Poverty”.
He took the Lord quite literally.
When he encountered the Lord in the broken down church of St. Damien, the Lord spoke to him from the crucifix. “Rebuild my Church.”
Francis immediately began to rebuild San Damiano because that is what he thought Jesus meant.
But Jesus did not mean the church as in a building. Jesus meant the Church as in its people.
Francis finally got what the Lord intended and immediately set out to rebuild the Lord’s Church.
Jesus calls us each day as well.
Do we understand what He is saying to us?
FAITH ACTION: We might be confused, as Francis first was, when the Lord calls to us. The only way to know, for sure, what Jesus wants is to listen to Him. Spend some time in quiet prayer this day, merely listening for the Lord. <hint: it’s not as easy as it sounds!>