Genesis 41:55-57; 42:5-7, 17-24 / Matthew 10:1-7
Life may be hard, and work may be hard.
We may not perish from hard work or from a hard life.
But a hard life and hard work can bring about an anger and bitterness.
And that will harden our hearts and we become angry and unhappy.
And that anger and unhappiness can hurt other people.
In the 1st reading, when Joseph’s brothers came before him, he recognized them, although they didn’t recognize him.
Joseph would have remembered how his own brothers stripped him of that multi-coloured cloak and wanted to kill him, but in the end, they pushed him into a dry well and finally sold him off into slavery.
He would have been angry and bitter, and even could have hated his brothers.
So now it was time for revenge. But Joseph’s heart not hardened by what he went through.
He even wept when he knew what his brothers were saying to each other.
Let us ask Jesus to cleanse our hearts of resentment, bitterness and hatred.
May He make our hearts gentle and humble like His.