In today's first reading an angel of the Lord instructs Philip to "get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route" (Acts 8: 26-40). He meets up with "an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, that is, the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury, who had come to Jerusalem to worship" and on his way back was reading the Scriptures but not understanding a thing he was reading. God's plan was that Philip explain the Scriptures to him. He catches up with his chariot, asks what he is reading and proceeds to proclaim Jesus to him, as all of Scripture is really about God's plan of salvation and the role of Jesus as Messiah, King, and Savior of the entire world.
What would you and I do when, out of the blue, God instructs us to "get up and head south" to "the desert route." When anything "goes south," or when anyone is in a desert, parched, dried up, unable to generate life and be productive, human nature has a tendency to bulk and not want to be a part of that experience. "It's not my fault that she/he is struggling." "He/she made his/her own bed; let them sleep in it. It's not my problem and I do not want to get involved." It is easy to dismiss what is problematic in another person's life and stay in our comfort zones. "I don't want to be bothered; I have no time for that foolishness" may be the tune of our rhetoric when hard times strike another person, especially the life of a "eunuch," a man who is regarded as lacking power or effectiveness.
Philip takes no such position. He gets up, catches up with the eunuch's charioteer and takes time to listen. The life of the eunuch is transformed! Through Philip's generosity, he's found the Lord and continues his way rejoicing in that new found joy.
To whom is the Lord calling me to listen? In whose life am I being called to make a difference? Will I listen? Will I leave my comfort zone when the Spirit calls?
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