Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,"Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 10:5-7

What would happen if Twelve people all of a sudden went out and proclaimed the "Kingdom of heaven is at hand?" What would the result be? Imagine first Jesus doing his miracles, how much more effective this message would be. The Twelve were also given the gift to heal and drive out demons as Jesus did. Today we reap the fruit of what they have sowed two thousand years ago.

Again, what would happen today if Twelve went out to proclaim "The Kingdom of heaven is at hand?" Would the results be just as effective today as it was in Jesus' time. Or would the Twelve be labeled as fanatics, as we so kindly label people who do God's work with zeal. We all know how we think, so now it's up to us to think about this. What would we think and do if Twelve today went out to proclaim that the Kingdom of heaven is at hand. Would we begin to think all sorts of things, and let our imaginations run havoc, or would we begin to pray for discernment? Pray for God's grace to touch us as his Kingdom is near.

When we pray, we invite God's kingdom to come close to us. We pray so that God's Kingdom will dwell within us.

So if Twelve came around proclaiming "The Kingdom of heaven is at hand," say a prayer to say yes, Dear Father may your Kingdom come.

Those things I used to consider gain I have now reappraised as loss in the light of Christ. I have come to rate all loss in the light of the surpassing knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ. For his sake I have forfeited everything; I have accounted all else rubbish so that Christ may be my wealth. Phillipians 3:7-8

Meditation:

When we think about all that we have and accumulated through the years, to what purpose does it serve, other than to make us look good. We fill our homes with so much, our closets with more than we need. We use storage as if we are going to use what we store there. But in the long run, it sits there collecting dust. Today's reading may apply to us, when we consider the gain we have, think about the loss of Christ. We have clutter. Not just in material goods, but in spriritual as well. We are a people who claim to be smart about how to do many things, but the one area we are not, is in cleaning our inner houses. Does it bother anyone that they have lost Christ, with so much that we take in on a daily basis.

When we forfeit our desires, in whatever they may be, then we have the knowledge of having chosen Christ as our wealth, as today's reading implies. If you don't think so, then try going a few days without acknowledging your desires. The desire to get angry, the desire to swear, the desire to hate, these are just a few. Think upon what desires drive you, and go from there.

I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the LORD. Hosea 2:21-22

The reference to "out of the land of Egypt" is the only thing that clues us in on who the Lord is speaking about. When we read this we could actually take it personal. He espouses us to himself, in right and in justice, in love and in mercy, and in fidelity, we shall know the Lord.

Has he spoken to your heart to do what is right for those around you, in justice. Has he spoken to you from another out of love, so we will know his mercy. Has he sought fidelity from you, to be loyal to Him.

God does espouse us to Him so we will know Him. Today it is spoken about Israel and them calling him baal, a deity not of God. But a god in the lower sense.

And God seeks to espouse her to Him for all time, just as in the days of old. A country that became lost, and Hosea reveals the heart of the Lord for this land. When God goes to such lengths for a land, that is filled with people, imagine the lengths he would go to for the world and all those who inhabit it.

"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house." So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith. Mark 6:4-6

The knew him as the Carpenter's son, they did not know he was God's Son, his own family knew. They supported his ministry. But the towns people lacked faith in him, they judged him as a carpenters son, not as a prophet. They only saw the before and not the after.

It's like us in a sense, what we do as a young person reflects on who we become. Or who our parents are and their role in our life. If Joseph was a Merchant then Jesus would have been known as the merchant's son. If God chose to reveal the gifts of his son, before it was time then the people would have come to recognize his Divine gift. But God does things for a reason. For us to understand, that no matter who we are or where we come from, or where we go, we are all God's children given a gift to help others along our path. When we have poor in our own communities, and refuse to see and help them. Unlike Jesus, he went to his home town to help them, but they lacked faith in him to bring healing to them, to set them free.