Differences

“After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where He himself was about to come.” (Luke 10:1).

Seventy Apostles (Icon)

I am the eldest of eight children.

When I was a little girl, I thought that because I came from the same family as my brothers and sisters, that I must be exactly like them.  I thought that because I was disciplined and responsible that they must be like this as well.  I thought that because I was competitive and focused, that they must all be like that as well.

I believed this all the way through my childhood and into adulthood.

It was only in the last few years that I began to realise exactly how different we all are.

This is not to say that one way is better than another.  Some of my siblings are far more fun than me.  Others are far less responsible than me.  Certainly, there are those who are less competitive than I am.  All of these differences work to make us great.  I can see where the free thinkers sit compared with my more rational ridged thinking style.  I can see how the others interact with their children compared with the way that I interact with mine.  And I can see where priorities lie.

And while it is true that in some areas, we are very very similar – being siblings and raised by parents within the same family – in other ways we are completely different!

And I have been thinking about that today.

You see, Christ chose seventy disciples to go out and teach.  Not a single pair among those seventy would have been identical.  No two people in the group would have had exactly the same strength or weakness.  And yet – among almost one hundred souls, Christ had a purpose.

“After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where He himself was about to come. And He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.’” (Luke 10:1-9).

When I think about those disciples, I consider their differences.  I consider how one might have been extraverted and loved to talk and another might have preferred to sit quietly and listen.  I can imagine how one soul would have connected with the extravert and another with the introvert.

My husband is a quiet man.  He does not speak very much.  I am louder and never stop speaking.  And God calls each of us to do His work in a different way.  And just as Christ made use of seventy different souls to teach His Word, twenty centuries ago, today He is relying on the various different strengths that I – and that you too – have to offer.  And it seems to me that in a world that prizes conformity, perhaps, those differences are just what my Beloved is asking for…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.