I would imagine most people have had a sleepless night or two in their life: a sleepless night caused by an important decision that you have been wrestling with for a period of time. You can’t get your mind to turn off so you lay there all night tossing, turning, thinking. The more you try to distance your mind from the decision, the more active your mind becomes. Eventually, you realize sleep is going to evade you so you get out of bed and begin your day. Jesus also experienced sleepless nights as he wrestled with big decisions. Take note however, in today’s Gospel, of how Jesus chose to spend this sleepless night.
Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles – Luke 6 : 12-19
In these days he went out to the mountain to pray; and all night he continued in prayer to God. And when it was day, he called his disciples, and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles; Simon, whom he named Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot, and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came forth from him and healed them all.
Scriptural Analysis
The first thing to take note of in this passage is what Jesus did when he was in the midsts of a difficult decision: a sleepless night. He did not spend that night alone but rather he spent that night in prayer, in conversation with his Father. Although scripture doesn’t explicitly say it, it is logical to conclude that he was praying about the twelve, who should be chosen, and for the twelve, that they may be given the grace they need to live up to the task at hand. Jesus knew what he was to face and what the twelve would witness. He also knew what the twelve would eventually be called to do and their need to be strengthened for the mission ahead.
As the night went and Jesus came down from the mountain and Jesus took action. He called the twelve, he preached, and he healed. This is another key characteristic of Jesus. He prays and then acts. He doesn’t act without praying but his prayer is also followed by action. It is appropriate to say that the action is a fruit of the prayer. There is an old story about a man who prays constantly to win the lottery but never purchases a lottery ticket and wonders why God has not answered his prayer. Now, I am not advocating playing the lottery nor am I saying God is going to make you materially wealthy. Rather, this story illustrates that prayer should lead to action. The Lord still expects us to participate actively in his work. We don’t simply pray and then walk away assuming he is going to handle it. Rather, we listen for his response, his call, and we allow that call to guide our actions.
It is important to discuss here the distinction between disciple and apostle as those often get used interchangeably when talking about the twelve. The word disciple means learner. There were numerous followers of Jesus: people who learned from him. The word apostle comes from the Greek word apostolos which means someone who is sent out. It is often used to denote an envoy or an ambassador. The twelve had a very specific mission they were to be entrusted with. Jesus knew that his time was limited and that he would not be able to reach all of humanity himself. These men were to be the ones he sent out to carry what they had been taught to the ends of the earth. They were the ones specifically called by Christ to pray and to take action.
Begin With Prayer
When we are faced with a decision, do we invite the Lord in? Do we seek him in prayer before we make a decision? And when we are faced with an extremely challenging or difficult decision that causes us to loose sleep, do we invite him into those sleepless nights with us? Our God is a personal God who longs to share life with us. He wants to be in the details and in the mess of our life. When we are struggling with a decision, he wants to walk along side us as we deliberate and decide. Each and every decision we make, we should invite him into. Now, I am not advocating that you spend thirty minutes in prayer before deciding if you want butter on your toast. Rather you need to adopt a constant openness to his will and the movement of his spirit in you as you make decisions throughout your day.
That openness comes through prayer: ideally by starting each day in prayer. We should strive to offer the Lord the first fruits of each and every day. As soon as we awake, we pray. I understand that can be challenging. People are busy getting the kids ready for school, getting ready for work, and barely making it out the door on time. However, the answer to the problem is simple: wake up earlier. Set the alarm 30 minutes earlier so that you can have the time to start the day in prayer with the Lord. While the solution is simple I also understand that it is downright hard to actually do this: you may even say heroic. However, what I can say with great certainty is if you make the commitment and ask the Lord to assist you, he will give you the grace you need to rise and spend time with him. I can also say it will make a huge difference in your day. You will be much more peaceful and you will be more in tune with the will of God. This peace and oneness with the Lord will only grow as your habit of starting each morning off in prayer grows.
Finally, be prepared to action. Once you find yourself in communion with the Lord, he will guide your actions throughout the day, but he will demand action. In some instances that action will be bold. It can be scary to trust fully and to follow him. However, as you do, you will see how the Lord gives you all that you need to be bold in those moments and he will use you to lead others to him.
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