Some of us may be quite enthusiastic or gung-ho about going forth to preach the Good News. We may have made great plans to go to other countries on a mission to preach to people we think have not heard the Good News, and we may have dreamed about converting huge numbers to Christianity. But if we consider for a moment: what about the very people in our community, our own backyard, our own housing area, who may have not heard about the Good News? It may sound surprising, but you would never know unless you reach out and find out, and you may find people nearby who are potential to be converted, and yet no one has actually made the effort to reach out to them.
In today’s Gospel, we read: “These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: ‘Do not turn your steps to pagan territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town; go rather to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.’ Upfront, we may be wondering why Jesus gave such strange instructions, since so many other people could have received the Good News and be converted. But if we consider for a moment what Jesus is telling us, we could realise that basically, He is reminding us that charity begins at home. Before we make big plans trying to preach the Good News to others, we should be reaching out to our own families and friends first. Some of us may have taken the easy way out by going elsewhere to preach the Good News, only to neglect or ignore our very own people. Perhaps we may be doing this because we find it easier to talk to strangers, or we think that our own people are too difficult or stubborn to talk to, but are we preaching the Good News selectively, thinking only of achieving a great success rate? Or are we preaching the Good News for the glory of God, regardless whether we are successful or not? May we learn from our loving Saviour and go forth and preach the Good News to all, especially to those near to us, and then to others as well.