Tuesday in the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time [384] Hosea 8:4-7, 11-13 Psalm 115:3-4, 5-6, 7ab-8, 9-10 Matthew 9:32-38

Praying Ordinary Time

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer

I am sure Jesus the man must have been overwhelmed sometimes at the numbers of people who sought him out and at the extent of their suffering. Today’s Gospel tells us that his “heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned.” We all feel that way sometimes. Lost. Wandering. Vulnerable. And you can bet that if you feel that way, others do too. Jesus says there is a need for more laborers for the harvest. He can’t do it all. We all must play a part in the community that is our faith. We can’t just wait for someone else to do it.

It’s my turn. My turn to step up and help those who are lost and wandering. Little everyday acts can make such a difference in someone’s life: Visiting someone who may be lonely. Starting up that difficult conversation after someone has lost a loved one to death. Pitching in to help with the parish potluck or the bake sale or the multitude of things that make up a community within our churches.

The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few. It is your turn and my turn to do something to help people feeling troubled and abandoned. We may not be able to solve their problems, but that feeling of connection and a feeling that someone cares can offer renewed hope. Those acts of reaching out strengthen our own bonds of community. We are not abandoned.