“Co-operating with our ‘Strange Master,’ Who calls us to ‘Dare to be Different!’”

(Based on Gen 41:55-57, 42:5-7a,17-24a and Mt 10:1-7 – Wednesday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time)

Jesus is strange!

And he loves to do strange things!

“Dare to be different” is a call which echoes very much through the corporate sector today, and also in many areas of our life!

And Jesus, certainly, is a model and an example for each one of us, in this ‘Daring to be Different’!

And this strange and daring Jesus – Who loves to do things differently –
…throws up a classic example for this, in today’s Gospel Reading, by choosing The Twelve…

Twelve strange persons to be His Daring disciples.

We could have a short litany of adjectives to describe or portray these Twelve…

Let’s get set with a mini-dictionary:

Ordinary, Mundane, Shy, Absent-minded, Introvert, Prejudiced, Inhibited…

Hated by society, Craver of power, Zealous in quick actions, Betraying Characters…
Sceptics, Unsteady Temperaments, Cynical….

The list is long, right?

Maybe, some of us, also very much possess these characters and traits!

Is it True?

But, with all these varied personalities and natures, Jesus, the Daring Master, chose His twelve, having these characters…!

The Lord loves to transform and change…

He changed the water into wine…

He transformed a few loaves of bread and fish as food for thousands…
He changed the raging sea to calmness and serenity…
He transformed sicknesses in people to good health and new vigour…
He changed the static and inhuman view of the Law to a dynamic and loving perception…

Yes, the Lord loves to transform and change…

And this Lord, who loves to transform and change, also worked wonders with the Twelve!

These Twelve, with their varied personalities and characters, were handed on the Charge to continue the Gigantic Task of their Daring Master: “To be the Ambassadors of the Kingdom of God”

To be with Him and to be sent out

To have authority over unclean spirits and drive them out
To cure every disease and illness and to preach!

These chosen lights were to cast their rays over the rest of humanity, in all nations.

Are we also hearing the Call of the Lord, to be the Ambassadors of His Kingdom, in the place where we are, in the state of life, that we are in?

Let us not be worried about our nature or temperament or character or weaknesses.

Yes, the Lord is strange…
… and He loves to do strange things

He is CRAZY over us!

The Lord also loves…
… to transform and to change

He is Willing to TRANSFORM us!

The only thing that He needs from us… is Our Consent.. Our Willingness…our Openness!

Let no negative feelings come in the way of this Deep Desire of the Lord…

Like the Israelites in Hosea 10:1…
… Let us not boast on our prosperity or our richness
… Let our hearts not remain divided in our loyalty

Let us instead plough a new ground…seeking the Lord…

The Kingdom of God is a vineyard…
… it needs labourers!

The Kingdom of God is a net…
… it needs fishermen!

The Kingdom of God is a field…
… it needs sowers and reapers!

The Kingdom of God is a flock…
… it needs shepherds!

Yes, the Lord is calling… the Lord is desiring… the Lord is wanting…

Are we hearing?

Let this not remain a Missed Call!

Let’s pick up, and answer…
… and Co-operate with the Strange Master, Who calls us to “Dare to be Different”!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

---

Discovering the beauty of the Catholic Church through the Catechism:
THE PROCLAMATION OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Everyone is called to enter the kingdom. This messianic kingdom is intended to accept people of all nations.
To enter it, one must first accept Jesus’ Word!
The kingdom belongs to the poor and lowly, which means those who have accepted it with humble hearts. Jesus is sent to “preach good news to the poor”
Jesus shares the life of the poor, from the cradle to the cross; He experiences hunger, thirst and privation.
Jesus identifies himself with the poor of every kind and makes active love toward them the condition for entering his kingdom.
Jesus invites sinners to the table of the kingdom: “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
He invites them to that conversion without which one cannot enter the kingdom, but shows them in word and deed his Father’s boundless mercy for them and the vast “joy in heaven over one sinner who repents”.
The supreme proof of his love will be the sacrifice of his own life “for the forgiveness of sins”.
Jesus’ invitation to enter his kingdom comes in the form of parables, a characteristic feature of his teaching.
Through his parables he invites people to the feast of the kingdom, but he also asks for a radical choice: to gain the kingdom, one must give everything.
Words are not enough, deeds are required.
The parables are like mirrors for man: will he be hard soil or good earth for the word?

Jesus and the presence of the kingdom in this world are secretly at the heart of the parables. One must enter the kingdom, that is, become a disciple of Christ, in order to “know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven”. For those who stay “outside”, everything remains enigmatic (Cf. CCC # 543-546)