Holy Emptiness

Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, no bag for your journey.
Mt.10:9,10

Jesus commissions the twelve by giving them... nothing. At least nothing material. Their mission is to rely on providence. 

I'm a "dot your i and cross your t" man. Spreadsheets? Love em. Jesus' approach to mission preparation is foreign to me. 

Maybe the sweet spot is somewhere between effort and commitment and that "holy emptiness". At the moment I'm all effort and commitment. I need to loosen my grip on self-sufficiency and work on expanding my God space, that space in which only he can provide. 

Jesus, I open my palm up to you, trusting in your provision. 

Authority

Jesus called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority...
Mat.10:1

Jesus' first act on forming the Church was to give it authority.

Recognising authority seems to invoke faith, faith in the one who gives that authority. The Centurion's great proclamation of faith started with, "I too am a man under authority." 

I believe authority is one of the primary differences between Protestant and Catholic churches. The Protestant Church invites me to have an opinion about doctrine. The Catholic Church invites me to believe... believe in the God given authority of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. 

I don't trust my opinions. I do trust the Church's teaching authority of the Magisterium. This authority is a strong foundation from which to "Go and make disciples of all nations."

Jesus, I place my trust in you.

Compassion

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 
Mt.9:36

A harassed, helpless crowd would make me want to run. Not Jesus, whose response was compassion.

The Latin root for compassion means "to suffer together". I feel empathy from another person when they draw me in rather than push me away. I know I am important to them at that moment. 

To suffer together with another I need to recognise our shared humanity, something Jesus did constantly. Prince or pauper, they have the same red blood and beating heart as myself. This is a good starting point for developing compassion.

Jesus, break my heart with the things that break yours. 

Son of Encouragement

And they laughed at him. But when the people had been turned out he went inside and took the little girl by the hand; and she stood up. 
Mt.9:24,25

With the unbelief of the scoffers removed the miracle could happen.

Naysayers suck energy out of the room and I've been guilty of it. I recall my youngest daughter sharing her dream of a student exchange to France. Practical dad me laughed at the idea with a "you and whose money" comment. She wisely went to her mother and between the two of them came up with a plan that got her there.

I've learnt not to rain on my daughter's parade but to be a cheer leader for her. That's much more fun.

Jesus, help me be a Barnabas, a Son of Encouragement to those I met today.

Joy

And Jesus said to them, ‘Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?
Mt.9:15

The immediate effect of having Jesus with us? Joy.

I tell my adult children, four of whom are married, "Sorry kids, the best wedding I've been to is when I married your mum." When I think of our wedding day I see a joyful celebration. We had our reception in a marquee, pretty radical in 1979. There were coloured lights and bunting strung everywhere. People were happy for us and cheering us on. 

Here's a photo of me and my gorgeous bride that day...

Jesus relating to me in the Church as a groom to a bride can't help bring similar emotions.  No wonder being Christian brings with it joy and joy in abundance. 

Pope Francis said joy is the air Christians breathe, that it's a gift not a purchase and that it brings a deep peace that only God can provide.

I'm reminded to breathe deep of that joy today and share it with others. Yes, the joy of the Lord is my strength.

Questioning Thomas

Thomas replied, ‘My Lord and my God!’
Jn.20:28

Thomas' questioning doubts led him to make one of the great proclamations of faith, "My Lord and my God."

I always think of Thomas not as doubting but more as questioning. "Lord, how can we know the way?" Jn.14:5 

Questioning Thomas never gave up on Jesus when he missed seeing Jesus' resurrected presence the first time. Thomas was still with the Church one week later. 

This tells me it's not only OK to question faith, it's healthy. However, I need to remember there's two spiritual players influencing my questions. The devil wants me to believe my doubts and doubt my beliefs. Jesus invites me to believe my beliefs and doubt my doubts. 

Being a convert, wrestling with questions is no strange occupation for me. Like Thomas, I've found the best place to be when questioning faith is within the loving arms of Mother Church. She guides me to where I'm meant to be, always.

Saint Thomas the Apostle, please pray for me

Take Heart My Son

And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.’ 
Mt.9:2

Faith of the friends carrying the paralytic resulted in his spiritual and physical restoration.

Faith is oxygen to Jesus. I am encouraged by this verse to keep up my intercessory prayers. My prayer list is on a spreadsheet currently with 309 rows. 246 of those rows flag prayers that have been answered. 63 prayers to go.

Some of these prayers have been waiting for an answer for sixteen years. These are the knotty ones I hand over to Mumma Mary, Undoer of Knots. Take heart my son...

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.