If you are catholic, I am certain that at least once you have been a missionary. If you haven´t, then the next time you can, go on a mission.
The first missions were organized by Jesus Christ himself. He told his disciples to share the good news to all the nearby towns and villages.[1] Ever since then, the Church has never ceased to organize missions by sending priests as well as secular people to spread the Gospel.
Missions always have the same purpose: to annouce the good news to each new generation. Since there are some many bad news, which is the good news? The good news is the Kingdom of God. God rules and will rule always.
Pope Bendict XVI wrote in his book Jesus of Nazareth a chapter that explains that the Kingdom of God is Jesus Christ himself. These terms are interchangeable when you read the Bible. For example, in the same passage I refered to earlier, Jesus sends his disciples with the following errands: to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. Therefore, following the Pope's teaching, we can substitute kingdom of God and the errands will be: to proclaim Jesus Christ and to heal.
Reading of the Word of God.
Todays reading is taken from the book of Joshua. Before you read I recommend that you pray for a moment to acknowledge the presence of God and to ask for the light of the Holy Spirit, so that your heart and soul will open willingly to the Lord.
14
The king of Ai saw this, and he and all his army came out very early in the morning to engage Israel in battle at the descent toward the Arabah, not knowing that there was an ambush behind the city.
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Joshua and the main body of the Israelites fled in seeming defeat toward the desert,
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till the last of the soldiers in the city had been called out to pursue them.
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Since they were drawn away from the city, with every man engaged in this pursuit of Joshua and the Israelites, not a soldier remained in Ai (or Bethel), and the city was open and unprotected.
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Then the LORD directed Joshua, "Stretch out the javelin in your hand toward Ai, for I will deliver it into your power." Joshua stretched out the javelin in his hand toward the city,
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and as soon as he did so, the men in ambush rose from their post, rushed in, captured the city, and immediately set it on fire.[2]Reflection.
The mission is an errand of God. The errand is a conquest type operation. Therefore, if you are a missionary, go out and conquer you brothers in Christ for God. The javelin that you hold in your hand is the faith that you have received from God. The winning tactic is to show your faith in the climatic moment of the battle. Expose yourself away from cover and let everyone see you, and in that moment show your faith, share your testimony. Your testimony is the account that explains how God has acted in your life. The hearts of the people are moved by testimonies like these. Their hearts will feel attracted to God and they will be better inclined to accept your faith.
Where do you get a javelin like that in the middle of the desert? A javelin like that can only come from God. Ask God for faith and he will more than gladly give it to you. Use your faith to defeat evil. The greatest evil is the evil of incredulity.
Finally let us ask our Holy Virgen Mother to teach us to pray with the same amount of faith like when se said: Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.[3]
Thank you for reflecting with me this passage of Scripture. This is a place where you are appreciated. This is a place where you are loved in Christ. You are the purpose of my blog. May God bless you abundantly.
[1] Luke, 9, 6
[2] Joshua, 8, 14-19
[3] Luke, 1, 38
