Wednesday, July 8, 2015

14th Week, Ordinary Time, Thursday, 09-07-15

Genesis 44:18-21, 23-29; 45:1-5 / Matthew 10:7-15

If we have to name a couple of the great figures of the Old Testament, one of them would be Joseph.

Joseph was indeed a great but humble man. He was loved by his father but hated by his brothers, favored and abused, tempted and trusted, exalted and abased.

Yet, at no point in the one-hundred-and-ten-year life of Joseph did he ever seem to get his eyes off God or cease to trust him.

Adversity did not harden his character. Prosperity did not ruin him. He was the same in private as in public. He was a great and humble man.

In the 1st reading, we again see his greatness and humility. He was able to forgive his brothers for what they had done to him and even loved them and revealed his identity to them.

He had the faith in God that God has a plan for him and he went trustingly to everywhere he was sent.

And Joseph himself said this to his brothers "do not reproach yourselves for having sold me here, since God sent me before you to preserve your lives".

Our faith is not a passive one. It is a dynamic faith in that we are always sent by God to people and to places to be an active part in His plan of salvation.

Jesus sent forth His disciples to proclaim that the kingdom of God is close at hand and that is expressed in various ways like curing the sick, cleansing the defiled and casting out evil.

Jesus is also sending us forth to be proclaimers of the kingdom of God and the Good News.

Let us remember that God has a plan for us. We just need to have faith and go trustingly to whoever and wherever God is sending us.