💖 HOMILY - SEPTEMBER 24 💖

First Reading - Ezra 9:5-9 

Gospel - Luke 9:1-6

There are moments in life when we look back and realize just how much of what we are and what we have is purely God’s grace. We may have stumbled, failed, or even wandered away, yet God never abandons us. Instead, He lifts us up, restores us, and sends us forward with renewed strength.

In the first reading, Ezra prays on behalf of a people who had sinned and fallen short, but he acknowledges God’s mercy: though they were broken, God had given them “a remnant” and “a stake in His holy place.” In other words, God had not cast them away; He gave them hope, a new beginning, and the courage to rebuild their lives. His mercy did not simply forgive the past — it opened the door to a future.

In the Gospel, we see this same pattern. Jesus sends His disciples out on mission, but notice how He does it. He tells them to take nothing for the journey — no staff, no bag, no bread, no money. Why? Because their strength and success would not come from human security, but from total trust in God. They were being sent as witnesses, not relying on possessions but on the power of the One who sent them.

Dear friends, we are never too broken, too weak, or too empty to be used by God. His mercy restores us, and His mission sends us. Like Ezra, we can acknowledge our failings, but like the disciples, we must also rise with courage, stepping forward in faith. Our poverty is not a hindrance — it is the very space where God’s power shines most brightly.

Each one of us has been entrusted with a mission — in our families, in our communities, in the Church. We may feel unworthy or inadequate, but today’s readings remind us that God does not call the perfect; He perfects those He calls. What matters is not what we carry in our hands, but the faith we carry in our hearts.

So let us go forth boldly, like the disciples, trusting in God’s providence. Let us live with gratitude, like Ezra, remembering that all we are is by God’s mercy. And let us never forget: when God sends us, He equips us. Our mission is not impossible — because He Himself is with us.