“Take nothing for your journey, no staff, no bag, nor bread, nor money – not even an extra tunic.”
Sending his twelve out on mission, Jesus wanted them to travel light. It is definitely not an experience I enjoy. I take extra batteries just in case … I take extra food because I may get hungry … I always have a reason. Why? The disciples were being asked to depend on the hospitality of those to whom they would preach the Gospel. Rather than be overly self-reliant, they needed to be reliant on others and to trust in Jesus. And He would help them through the kindness of strangers.
But Jesus is obviously talking about more than material things. We all like to be independent, and at times we need to be. But we can never be completely self-sufficient. We began life completely dependent on parents and others, and as we move towards the end of life, we will equally need others to care for us. Between these two end-points of high dependence, we depend on others for what we do not have within ourselves. Why deprive ourselves of rich resources that others can offer us? The Lord wants us to welcome the kindly service of others. Each of us has much to give and much to receive. The Lord who uses us to serve others also wants us to avail of others’ help.