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Gospel: luke 6: 12 – 19
Jesus departed to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground.
A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people
from all Judea and Jerusalem
and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon
came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him
because power came forth from him and healed them all.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Growing up, I remember playing backyard sports with my older brother and his friends. I was often chosen last because I was the youngest; the tag-along; the runt of the group.
If you wanted to win, then choosing me wasn’t the smartest idea.
It hurt being chosen last… every time… but humanly speaking, it was understandable. Everyone else was taller, stronger, and faster.
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But what happens when God enters a person’s life?
All of a sudden, being young, slower, or inexperienced doesn’t matter. God can do anything through anyone. In fact, throughout the Bible, we see God choosing the least likely person to carry out his will.
Consider what happens in today’s Gospel.
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Jesus chooses the twelve most unlikely men to be on his “team.”
None of them were scholars of the Law; nor were they wealthy, famous, educated, or influential in society. They were ordinary men, mostly fishermen, with their own share of flaws.
But Jesus gives them the grace to change – first themselves and then the world.
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After the resurrection, the Apostles go out and preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, as far west as Spain and as far east as India! Many of them gave their lives doing so.
But their courage – and successful preaching – remind us that God can do extraordinary things through ordinary people like us.
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So, what has God given me do to in life?
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Whatever it is – whether that means being a parent, spouse, teacher, priest, servant, or missionary like the Apostles – we can do it all through Christ who strengthens us.
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Image credits: (1) Franciscan Media, Fritz von Uhde (2) Kids First Community (3) +Jesus