Daily Reflection for Tuesday, November 10, 2020
Peace and Blessings Friends and Parishioners,
We encourage you to reflect on Tuesday’s scripture readings at this link:
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111020.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: Titus 2:1-8. 11-14
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 37:3-4,18, 23, 27, 29
Gospel: Luke 17:7-10
Our reflection on Tuesday’s readings:
Time was short. Jesus had gathered a group of everyday guys . . . fishermen, farmers, tax collectors, etc. . . . and in today’s Gospel Jesus uses this parable to train them for their upcoming work as his apostles. Jesus uses the example of a master and his servant who spends the entire day working in the fields and tending to the flocks of sheep. At day’s end, the hard-working servant is expected to come in, put on an apron, prepare a meal, and wait on his master.
While we might consider that “unfair,” Jesus wants the disciples to know that as disciples their work will proceed on God’s terms. They must be prepared to handle whatever God wants of them. But what does that mean to me, now?
I can’t control what God wants. I can only choose how I respond to God. Discipleship and salvation aren’t granted on my terms. As the servant, I can’t claim that God “owes me!” I can’t “strike” for better working conditions. I know God’s work needs more “hands and feet” -- one can see the needs on a drive through any town or city, anywhere. Discipleship is a full-time job.
Granted, full-time discipleship can become too much! Even Jesus needed time away from daily demands, and again, he lived the example for them. He’d send apostles to the next town while he renewed himself. Just as Jesus set aside time for prayer and being alone with God, we need to retreat from our ministries and active lives for time in spiritual practices.
The nature of discipleship is determined by circumstances. A single mother with two jobs practices discipleship differently than a financially comfortable retiree. But for all of us, the focus is the same – living out our servanthood through a full-time love of God and others.
I’ve reached a stage in life where discipleship has changed. It was not always easy to pass the baton to the next ministry leader who would carry on the active ministry work I had enjoyed. Discipleship now focuses on gratitude for what I have received in life, for those who’ve been God’s hands for me, and for those who’ve blessed me in many other ways. Most of all, I am grateful for the privilege of discipleship and for the community where I could serve.
Peace, my friends,
Bill Bradbury