God

has called you for a mission, and he has equipped you with everything

you need to carry it out.

When

Jesus called the disciples, he gave them all they needed to minister

on his behalf in the towns and villages. He enabled them to preach

the kingdom of God and heal people every­where. There was no need

to bring anything else along to complete that mission. He sent them

with instructions to accept people’s hospitality as God’s

provision for them. They were to stay with people who received them,

developing relationships and being content with what they were given.

But if rejection happened, they were to move on, warning people about

rejecting the truth. They had to move on because time was short and

the mission was great.

Jesus’

ministry is still about word and deed. We have been empowered to

serve in these critical areas. The message is powerful, and our words

must be spoken with acts of compassion for a world that needs to hear

the good news. But to teach that God loves sinners means little if we

do not also show God’s love by helping to meet human needs.

We

have all that we need to fulfill our calling as Christ-fol­lowers.

Let’s be faithful in sharing his message with words and actions.

And let’s trust the results to the powerful work of the Holy

Spirit.