As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.  Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts – no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.

This is the word of Lord. Thanks be to God.

REFLECTION:

So at this point in Matthew’s gospel, we’ve seen Jesus doing all sorts of Jesus-y things. He’s healing the lepers, he’s driving out demons, he’s teaching people the ways of life in all its fullness. And as I’m sure you can imagine, he’s started to develop quite the posse. People followed him around to watch and to learn.

This passage sees Jesus giving authority to the people who had been following him – his disciples. He gives to them the power to do everything that they’ve just spent all that time watching him do. Next, Jesus sends them out with a kit list that doesn’t exactly sound like you’re off on a five star spa retreat. He says forget about your Monzo card, leave your change of flip flops at home, and don’t even think about the walking stick.

But he leaves the disciples with this task, announce that the Kingdom of Heaven is near and do what he had been doing. God would provide all that they would need. And off they go.

During the summer of 2017, at the end of my first year at uni, 3 friends and I took part in something called Escape and Pray. It was a 72 hour mission trip and the whole premise is based around this passage in Matthew 10. We were to put Jesus’ instructions given to his first disciples into practice 2,000 years later. The idea was to travel to a city in Europe, with no money, no plans, nowhere to stay. Just some friends and a God who provides. We didn’t even get told where we were going, just to show up to Manchester Airport at 7am on a certain day. We then opened an envelope containing 4 tickets to Zagreb in Croatia. To help you imagine the scene, think Top Gear challenge, just more Jesus Christ and less Jeremy Clarkson.

Our mission for the trip was to connect with other believers, to pray for people and to trust that the Lord would feed us and provide places to stay. To cut a really long story short, he did.

I have so many stories of God’s faithfulness and kindness from that trip, but the biggest take away was how time and time again, how God provided.

After returning from Croatia, I remember beginning to reflect on what had been some of the best moments of my life. But, I also began to feel a tension. A tension between what had happened over the weekend and what was my everyday life. A tension between the 3 days I’d spent totally reliant on God’s provision and the other 7,000 regular days I had under my belt. I wonder if you’ve ever felt like this?

I found myself returning to this passage in Matthew 10 and asking questions like, ‘Do I need to give up on uni? Should I sell everything I have and live out of a backpack?’

In that moment I felt the Lord reminding me that his desire is for us is to trust him in the ordinary, everyday – not just in the exciting moments. He reminded me that everything we have is because of his provision. The porridge for breakfast, the car for the school run, the roof over your head.

I wonder if you need reminding of this today? I certainly do. You see, he is just as faithful in the season that feels dry and monotonous as he is in the season when life seems to be at its best. If, like me, you need reminding of this truth, we’re in good company.

There’s this beautiful moment at the end of Luke’s gospel just before Jesus is arrested and led to Calvary.

It’s now a couple of years down the line from when Jesus first commissioned the disciples. A lot had happened since then. Unsure of what’s to come, confused by the events of the past couple of days and seemingly so exhausted that they can’t even stay awake to keep watch. Jesus reminds them of their calling. He reminds them of his promise. He reminds them of his faithfulness.

This is in Luke 22 and he asks his disciples, ’“When I sent you without a purse, a bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.’ They lacked nothing. The Lord provided all that they needed. Food, clothes, places to stay, people to meet. He had it all covered. It is true when the disciples are first called, it is true when Jesus is led away to be crucified. He is faithful, he is good, he will provide.

In this moment where it must have felt like the disciples’ whole worlds were falling around them, Jesus reminds them of their calling and reminds them of who has got their back.

I’m sure you’ve heard it time and time again, but these are crazy times that we find ourselves in. I wonder if you’re actually quite enjoying this season of life – maybe it’s more time with the family, a slower pace.

I also wonder if you can relate to the disciples in this moment, in the garden of Gethsemane as well. Everything is changing, life is seemingly never going to be the same, confusion, grief, anguish.

The disciples were unaware of what was to come. They hadn’t read the end of the book. It hadn’t even been written yet. But in that moment, Jesus reaffirms his call on their lives, reminds them of their purpose and reminds them of his faithfulness. In the excitement when the Lord calls us for the first time, just like the disciples, to the moments when everything seems to be lost. He’s done it before, he will do it again. He’s provided before, he will provide again.