Meditation on God's Word

Being a Missionary

This weekend the entire church celebrates World Mission Sunday in which we renew our missionary commitment to the Gospel. Pope Francis said that “the mission of the Christian in the world is a mission for all, a mission of service, which excludes no-one; it requires great generosity and in particular the gaze and heart turned heavenward to invoke the Lord’s help.” The Holy Father exhorts all of us to see ourselves as missionaries.

In today’s first reading, the Lord says to us “I call you by your name.” This invitation to be a missionary is deeply personal. All of us are called by the Lord to serve him with our whole lives and help spread the Gospel  to those around us. One way we can live out this missionary call is bybeing faithful to our call of stewardship.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus says to give “God the things that are God’s.” Is not our entire life God’s? He is the one who created us and blessed us with countless gifts which are all owed back to him. Cardinal Collins says in his Pastoral Letter on Stewardship that “A steward is a servant entrusted for a time with the goods of the Master. The steward uses but does not own these goods, and must eventually give an account to the Master.” Let us seek to give of ourselves to our parish community in order to live out our missionary call of stewardship.

Summary

Pope Francis said that “the mission of the Christian in the world is a mission for all, a mission of service, which excludes no-one.” One way we can live out this missionary call is by being faithful to our call of stewardship. Let us strive to be grateful for the gifts we have received and offer them back to the God for Jesus says in today’s Gospel to give “God the things that are God’s.”