“He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick.”
Mark 6:8

Today, Jesus instructs us to travel in mission lightly, taking just the basics. A pair of sturdy shoes and the conviction of our faith is all the inspiration we need to share the Good News.

Yes, faith. But also confidence! During my mission years in Peru, I worked in formation with a group of seminarians who were devoted to their calling and studied for the priesthood with great fervor. They wanted to get everything they did just right—in other words, perfect! But “perfect” became an impediment. They didn’t trust their own judgment. They worried that the people would not accept them unless everything they said and did was just so. Of course, that’s an impossibly high bar to achieve. Only God is perfect!

It took a bit of encouragement from me, but after a while I finally got them to trust in themselves. Thank God, many found their calling as gifted clergymen and homilists. They became who they were called to be, not by being “perfect” but by delivering the message of Christ’s compassion with confidence. And that’s all that God ever asks.

Friend, none of us wants to make a mistake or appear less than who we are. God understands. If you have any doubt that you are a worthy and capable messenger of the Gospel, just know this: You have been called to mission in baptism and your gifts are uniquely yours. God’s grace will show you how to share those gifts. Whatever path you take, you will be building God’s Kingdom on earth. And that will be perfect enough.