Team Player
“The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.” (Luke 10:1)
“The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.” (Luke 10:1)
One of my favorite sports films is Miracle, the story of the 1980 U.S. Olympic men’s hockey team, which eventually won the gold medal. In assembling the team, head coach Herb Brooks did not look for a collection of individual “superstars.” Rather, he chose a group of scrappy young players who could be molded into a team. Incidentally, no U.S. men’s hockey team has won the Olympic gold since.
The gospel reading from Luke begins with Jesus sending “teams of two” ahead of him to prepare the way for him. Elsewhere in the gospels, we see where Jesus works with large and small teams. Even when his teammates disappointed him or simply didn’t understand, Jesus never said, “Just forget it, I’ll do it myself.”
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking our faith is only about “Jesus and me.” If you find yourself slipping down that slope, stop what you’re doing, sit in front of a crucifix, and remember that there are two beams: the vertical (our relationship with the Lord) and the horizontal (our relationship with others). At no point has Jesus called us to be “lone rangers” in our faith. The Church, even with its imperfect members (including ourselves), is our “team,” our family, with whom we are called to serve, shoulder to shoulder.
How is God calling me from being a “lone ranger” to a “team player”?
Jesus, you called your disciples to partner with you. Grant me the humility to serve you with the rest of your “team,” my sisters and brothers in your name. Amen.
Deacon Rick Wells was ordained for the Diocese of St. Petersburg in 1997. A former Methodist, he was received into the Catholic faith in 1988. He currently works as Chancellor for the Diocese and serves at St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Clearwater. Deacon Rick and his wife Barbara have been happily married for 35 years.