NAMES WRITTEN IN HEAVEN

As Christians, we are to be missionaries and evangelizers; one who is sent to proclaim the good news he has received. When we were baptized and have become partakers in the life of Christ, the Lord sends. He sends us for a purpose; to a mission (from the Latin word mittere meaning "to send"). We are missionaries like our God who did not remain in heaven for Himself but shared His love to us (ad extra) by creating us, by redeeming us, and by sustaining us.

Where are we to go? What are we to bring? Who can be our strength?

Mission, more than a matter of going to a place, refers to our internal disposition. More than geographical, mission is existential in nature. We can be missionaries, even if we are not in Africa, even if we are in a city. As long as we respond to the call of being sent by God wherever He wills us to go, we can be missionaries, even simply to our neighbors in need, or strangers we meet along our way to the school. We are to be missionaries towards others wherever we are, whenever we are called to be the bearers of Good News (cf. 2 Tim 4:2).  

Jesus urged His disciples to bring nothing (I would like to believe) except a Person, Jesus Himself, the one true God who can bring forth peace to every household he visits. It is an exhortation pointing to the dependence that every disciple has to cultivate: dependence on God as a sheep is depended on his shepherd. As missionaries, we bring Jesus, the One who sends us, who accompanies us, whom we bring to the community we meet, and celebrate with. 

Thus, to be a missionary, to be sent by God, it is necessary that we have Jesus in our hearts; that we ourselves have experienced Him in our life. After all, in all things that we will share, only our experience with Jesus truly matters.

The message we bring as God sends us is the joy that God has given to us; the same joy that Jerusalem has received from God (cf. Is 66:10-14c). Comfort and wealth have been granted to her, and the same is true to us, the New Jerusalem. We cannot but cry out to God with joy (Ps 66), share the good news we received (as goodness is self-diffusive and uncontainable).

The message we bring is not of our own, but of God. In fact, it is God himself whom we bring. St. Paul, in his missionary journey, boasts nothing, not even about himself, but only the crucified Christ (cf. Gal 6:14-18). He brought Jesus, only Jesus, to the people with whom he administered. As Christians, we have in our name the very message we are to bring to the people we meet. We Have Christ and His great love (manifested on the cross) as the only message we impart to our communities.

Mission is not a task but the very spirit that should animate us, thus being missionary not only in words but most especially through our life. To be a missionary is a way of life that constantly responds to the need to proclaim the good news; to proclaim Jesus' love whether in our offices, in our communities or in other countries.

In the end, after fulfilling our mission, what counts is if our work has enabled us to be holy, so much so that our name had been written in heaven. That is the true joy of mission! It is a mission accomplished through God who is our sender, message, and strength along the way.