Summertime is this part of the year when most of us go on vacations, we look for some rest from our responsibilities, and make plans to find a moment just for ourselves. After the whole year of work, we deserve to take some break from the daily routine. Every year, exactly during this time the Sunday gospels speak about Jesus sending out his disciples two by two on an evangelization mission. They are to go to prepare the coming of their Master by preaching, exorcisms and healing. The same mission of announcing the good news of Jesus is still being carried out today by the Church to those who want to find true peace and rest.
At first sight I may seem difficult to see what this gospel reading has to do with our summertime plans. For some people, the summer break is also a break from their faith, from God. But that is not the case for Christians. Yes, our bodies need some refreshment, some change, even for a moment, but even the best vacations will never be able to satisfy our souls. Deep down we are restless, and only God can fill up the void of our souls with his divine love.
That is exactly the purpose of the mission that Jesus assigns to the Twelve. They are sent not only to preach, but also to cast out demons and to heal. The interior unrest that we experience at times may have different origins. Sometimes, it comes from our lack of faith when we doubt about God’s providence and his power to save us. At times, it is a consequence of sin, when we separate ourselves from the source of life and peace, then we become permanently restless. But it can be also a result of an attack of the evil one. It may happen that we are tormented by some memories of the past or some projections for the future which the devil uses to deprive us of peace that comes from God’s providence and love. In another time, we may experience some bodily suffering—illness, loneliness, precariousness. The disciples of Jesus are sent to bring healing both to our bodies and to our souls.
And they can fulfil this mission only through the power of Jesus. That’s why they are to go without any human securities trusting that he will confirm his power through the accompanying signs. After two thousand years nothing has changed.
Still today Jesus sends out his massagers to bring the same message of salvation to our lives.
But there is one more thing that Jesus mentions in the gospel—our response. In the end the manifestation of God’s power in our lives depends on our response of faith. God saves us through what he gives to us, not through what we give to him. And yet to receive his gifts we need to respond to them with faith and humility. This is the path where we can find true rest, not only in the summertime.