Ezekiel 2:2-5 / 2 Cor 12:7-10 / Mark 6:1-6
To say that something is tried-and-tested, it means to say that it is proven to be effective and reliable. It means that it works.
But to say that something is tried and tested, it does not necessarily mean that it succeeded at the first time and at the first test.
It would have gone through a series of trials and numerous tests before it can earn the title “tried-and-tested”.
So, there are products that claim to be tried and tested like beauty and skincare creams to prevent aging, hair rejuvenating lotions that will make hair grow, and other health products that claim to do wonders.
And there are also methods and techniques to make money, that claimed to be tried and tested, and claimed to be successful, or at least a high percentage of success.
When these products and methods claim to be what they are, it is up to us to try it and test it and then give our verdict on it.
To earn the title “tried-and-tested” is certainly not an easy process, and setbacks and criticisms are to be expected.
We don't usually say that a person is “tried-and-tested”, but we would say that the person is trustworthy, reliable, honest, sincere and faithful.
To have all these qualities is as good as saying that the person has been tried and tested, and it is a person that people will look up to.
When Jesus came to His hometown, His reputation had preceded him. He had been “tried-and-tested” and He had been successful so far in His ministry.
And when He began teaching in the synagogue, the people were astonished when they heard Him.
They had heard about His wisdom and the miracles He worked. They have known Him before He left, and He was different now, and they wondered where He got all those gifts of wisdom and miracles.
And then they dug up His background and labelled Him as a carpenter, and they would not accept him. In other words, they so-called closed the case on Jesus.
So even before Jesus could be tried and tested in His own hometown, He was rejected.
In the minds of the people of His hometown, carpenters cannot be preachers or prophets. That left Jesus amazed.
Certainly, He was disappointed, and He could work no miracle there, though He cured a few sick people.
It was a setback for Him to be rejected by the people of His hometown, but He had to move on to proclaim the Good News elsewhere.
The gospel account reminds us that new beginnings can be difficult to accept, especially when we are so used and familiar with the old ways.
But it is in these new beginnings that we have to try and test out the new directions that God is showing us.
In this particular time, there are new initiatives and people have come forward to keep the faith going.
There are people manning the safety procedures for Masses to ensure a safe environment for worship in Church.
There are people who have organized online prayers and spiritual activities to keep the faith burning and growing.
There are other initiatives that are being tried and tested to see how people can be connected with God and with each other.
Through these ways and means, the Good News is being proclaimed, not just in Church, but also at homes and even in never-thought-of places.
These are the prophetic beginnings of the future.
Let us be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, let us try and test out the new ways and directions.
Let us accept what God is showing us, and the Good News of God’s love will still be proclaimed even in these times.