Let’s share the Good News!

In today’s Gospel, Jesus sends out a large number of disciples. He’s setting the structure that will

eventually bring the Good News to the ends of the earth. His words and actions tell us three things

about being a Christian:

1. We are people that have a mission. Jesus formed a Church because he had a mission (to share the Good News with the entire world). It’s not that he formed a Church for fellowship and then gave it a secondary task of evangelizing. Rather, the primary reason for forming the Church is to further the mission – everyone sharing in the Good News that we might ALL BE ONE in Christ.
2. There is an urgency to our task. Jesus told the 72 disciples he sent out not to “greet people along the way”. This means that nothing is more important than sharing the Good News. It should be one of the primary priorities in our lives.
3. It’s important how we bring forth the message. God is working through us; he calls us to offer peace to the world. This means we are not to condemn the world or pass judgement (that’s not our role). Rather, we are heralds of a beautiful truth – a vision of new life in Christ as a better way to live.

Many respond, “OK, I hear the call, BUT I’M NO EVANGELIST”, how am I supposed to do that?

That’s understandable because research has shown that personal evangelization is the area that causes the most discomfort among engaged Catholics. Be not afraid, no one is asking you to become a street preacher or to walk into the lion’s den. Let me offer a simple plan.

• Start with a grateful heart. Everything we have is a gift from God. Reflect on your gifts and talents, your family, and those who have touched your life in a positive way. What experiences have shaped your faith? Thank God for those blessings.
• Let’s open our eyes to God’s movement in our lives and in the lives of others around us. While the world focuses on challenges and hardship, there are many examples of people giving themselves completely for the good of others – let’s open our eyes to see how God is working in the world.
• Finally, let’s share with others what we’re grateful for and what we’ve seen. Ask God to show us opportunities to witness. Have simple chats that plant seeds for the Holy Spirit to work. Thank God by sharing your experience with the Good News.

The disciples were sent out with no money bag, no sack, and no sandals. That left them totally dependent on God. They adopted a whole new way of life with God in the center. Like them, we should make our lives an offering to God. In essence, this means a disciple of Christ recognizes that all we have is a gift from God and realizes that the best way to say thanks is to use of our life to do something beautiful for God in return.

Let’s spread the Good News to our end of the world, right here in Louisville, KY, one grandchild, one

friend, one neighbor at a time.