The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth
Then he went about among the villages teaching. 7He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 10He said to them, ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.’ 12So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. 13They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them. Mark 6:1-13
Since my mother's passing, it is hard for me to really define my hometown. Although we grew up in Harrison, New York, north of the city, the only home our parents ever owned was in Cape May Point. Our best family memories are all there. My Dad was clergy, we had little money, so we all had to do the work of upkeep. Painting, repairing, mowing were the minor jobs. My parents retied to Cape May Point in 1985. My Dad passed in 1994 and my mother in 2015. Since the house is sold, we're pretty powerless to be there. Now when we go "home", we have to rent a place or crash with old friends. My children have grown up there too over the summers, and they all find themselves rooted to that place. We see ourselves as part of the fabric, the sand itself, and yet, it is hard to go home sometimes, truly.
Jesus returns home and finds that his lifetime associates are completely skeptical about him. His family doesn't even get him. He is pretty powerless in this situation. Yet, despite all that is hard and frustrating, he shares his strength and power with his disciples and they go out and change the world. God invites us today to see our feelings of powerlessness as an opportunity to share. Whether in our home town or wherever we are on the road, God has promised to help us find a way to share the love and healing the world needs.
Today I ask God to help me be active in the pursuit of sharing. May we turn our powerless and grief into opportunities to include others. May God use us in our weakest places and well as in our strong times.
Since my mother's passing, it is hard for me to really define my hometown. Although we grew up in Harrison, New York, north of the city, the only home our parents ever owned was in Cape May Point. Our best family memories are all there. My Dad was clergy, we had little money, so we all had to do the work of upkeep. Painting, repairing, mowing were the minor jobs. My parents retied to Cape May Point in 1985. My Dad passed in 1994 and my mother in 2015. Since the house is sold, we're pretty powerless to be there. Now when we go "home", we have to rent a place or crash with old friends. My children have grown up there too over the summers, and they all find themselves rooted to that place. We see ourselves as part of the fabric, the sand itself, and yet, it is hard to go home sometimes, truly.
Jesus returns home and finds that his lifetime associates are completely skeptical about him. His family doesn't even get him. He is pretty powerless in this situation. Yet, despite all that is hard and frustrating, he shares his strength and power with his disciples and they go out and change the world. God invites us today to see our feelings of powerlessness as an opportunity to share. Whether in our home town or wherever we are on the road, God has promised to help us find a way to share the love and healing the world needs.
Today I ask God to help me be active in the pursuit of sharing. May we turn our powerless and grief into opportunities to include others. May God use us in our weakest places and well as in our strong times.
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