Strength for the Faith Journey

In today’s first reading, Acts 14: 19-28, Paul is stoned and dragged out of the city believing to be dead. The disciples of Jesus gather around him.  He gets up and leaves with Barnabas to go to Derbe and several other cities to proclaim the good news, strengthening other disciples, encourageing them to persevere in the faith.  This particular journey ends in Antioch where they are “commended for their work”   and where they, in turn,  “reported all that God had done with them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.”

Imagine going through the city/the village where you live sharing your faith in Jesus and suddenly being turned upon viciously, violently, literally having stones thrown at you or attacked verbally, words of hatred and rejection hurled at you.  Would you, accompanied by other believers, get up, maintain your peace, and move on to another place to continue the mission God entrusted to you?  Or would you withdraw, tell yourself that you do not have what it takes to do this work, that you have had enough, that the price  isn’t worth it, that you are not going to risk your  life; that, no way, are you going to make a fool of yourself and invite the wrath of your neighbor.

Notice that Paul does what he does, not alone, but with other disciples. It is with their support, that Paul is able to get up and move on.  At the end of this particular journey, Paul also seeks the support of fellow disciples. St. Luke , the author of Acts, tells us that Paul and Barnabas “spent no little time with the disciples.” 

In order to make progress in our faith journey and in proclaiming the Gospel either with words, or with our lives,  we too need support from other disciples, especially when we meet opposition from without or within. We also need to take time to report to others “all that God has done” and how God “opens the door of faith” for us in our work and daily living experiences. If I do not have that kind of support, I need to find it, seek it out, or make it happen by taking the initiative to form such a group.