My nine-year-old daughter is a budding artist. Recently, I came home to find her surveying a
series of bird drawings she had completed. Each one was created to be a gift for a specific family member or friend.
Her reasoning for each piece was delightful. To
her aunt who loves chickens, a picture of a gaudy rooster, to her grandmother a pair of perched finches that reflected their quiet time together and so on. She is honest about her works and can see both their beauty and flaws. Despite any imperfections, she loves each one and expects it to carry that love to the intended recipient.
I imagine this is similar to God sending us to be His “co-workers” (1Cor 3:9). He delights in the beauty He created; and undeterred by our brokenness, chooses to bless the world through us.
This is evident in the Mass readings since Easter. We have been attentively following the works of the apostles. In stark contrast to Jesus, the apostles are imperfect and prone to all types of failures. It is befuddling that Jesus would trust fallen people when the stakes are so high. Through a total gift of self, Jesus gains the grace necessary for the salvation of every soul. He then entrusts the message and means to access that salvation to the care of the apostles. Other than “Was He crazy?” another, less blasphemous, question arises: “What did He see in them?” The same question can equally apply to Robert Prevost, Bishop Malloy, our pastors, and us.
What does God see in us? Unlike an employer, He does not select us because we possess a specific ability, personality type, skill set, education level, or any other qualification that we would traditionally expect for someone in such a critical role. On our own, we have no assets to bring to the table. We are totally unqualified for our role in salvation history, whether it is as a parent or pope. When Jesus called the Twelve, He never once said, “You have this talent which will make a great addition to the team.”
Not only did the apostles lack any noteworthy talents, every outward sign suggested they were the wrong people. Matthew was a tax collector and a de facto traitor to the Jewish people, Simon the Zealot was a religious fanatic, and Paul was killing Christians. This should give encouragement to those of us who struggle to believe that we can contribute to the kingdom of God. If God could use these broken men, He can use us.
Every person has been created for eternal life with God; this is our common vocation. But each of us also has a unique role in the kingdom of God in which we are invited to participate in the salvation of others. This may be as a friend, family member, or even apostle. God made you for this particular vocation. As my daughter created each artwork with a specific intention and person in mind, God knit you in your mother’s womb (Ps 139:13). He placed in you the seeds of your vocation and continues to mature them through the grace of the sacraments and the life of discipleship.
This maturation can be seen in Peter. Jesus is constantly teaching, correcting, forgiving, and praying for Peter. Jesus took an unassuming fisherman and formed him to be the first pope. In the Acts of the Apostles, Peter and the other apostles still struggle, but are successful because they rely on the Holy Spirit. God saw in the apostles the same thing He sees in you, the beauty He created, even when you cannot.
A wonderful way to mature in the life of discipleship is the Diocesan Ministry Formation Program. A new group begins this August. More information can be found at https://www.ceorockford.org/ministry-formation-program/
