Vocation and mission. To encourage the daily proclamation of the Gospel.

Are there many of us Christians? In the beginning, how many disciples were there? He commanded them: “Take nothing for your journey…” (Lk 9:2). I would like to dwell on two expressions in this sentence. “…and sent them forth to preach” (Mk. 6:7). The Lord gradually prepared the apostles for their ministry. The evangelist meant that Jesus recognized His disciples as sufficiently prepared to go forth independently to preach the Word of God. From that moment on, they are Christ’s faithful helpers. From now on, the Lord wants them to walk around Galilee on their own, see for themselves the difficulty of this ministry, and find out what they need for it.

Why does He send them out two by two? In pairs, they are trustworthy witnesses under the Judaistic law. And, of course, it was also helpful because they could help one another because unexpected situations can happen when wandering. So why doesn’t Jesus send his disciples to preach right after he is called? Because he wants to prepare them for this massive project of spreading the Gospel, which has been going on for the third millennium. Jesus invites the disciples to preach the gospel in several places in the Holy Scriptures. When we look after Mark’s Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples: “Go and preach, make new disciples” (cf. Mk 16:15-18). He sends them out, but he gives them his power. This power connects today’s reading and the end of the Gospel. He sends them with his passion that awakens and changes human hearts. He has also called us to go out to preach, to heal, and to fight evil spirits.

This power connects today’s reading and the end of the Gospel. He sends them with his passion that awakens and changes human hearts. He has also called us to go out to preach, to heal, and to fight evil spirits. There are also times in our lives when we hear the unmistakable voice of God calling us, and we can stand up and go. Are we also ready to proclaim the gospel and God in our neighborhood, home, and workplace? Many times, we have prayed, and the power and bliss of prayer came deeply and set hearts on fire, quenched passions, reason became apparent, and the will wanted only good.

The Lord called us in Baptism, sent us into the world through the Sacraments of Marriage and Priesthood, and gave us strength in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. He touches our hearts every day. God never leaves us; we can forget him only for a time. The Lord never leaves us once He has handled the human spirit. He is still calling and sending us, and He will do so a second and a third time…, expecting our response. The Lord only does some things at a time. He allows us to reflect, digest, and remember the experience we have already received. But he calls and sends more insistently, encouraging us to follow Christ and serve the Church actively. Such is the nature of the call and mission from the Lord. We must remember this in our daily lives. We must keep in our hearts the joy that God is, that he knows me, and I know him. And it is in this that we are like the apostles. Jesus sends his disciples and us to preach the Gospel and live according to his commandments, and he stays with us.