Our Christian identity is made real in our relationship with Christ as His disciples. It initiates us into Jesus' relationship with the Father and into His relationship with other people. In imitation of Jesus, we learn how to pray and how to act, how to assume responsibility and how to become responsive, how to suffer and how to die. We learn to trust completely in the all-loving Father in all situations.

In the missionary discourse, Jesus told His disciples that they could expect the same treatment that He Himself received. He did not promise them an easy life free from conflicts or opposition. He instead prepared them for their own crosses. Through these trials and sufferings, the disciples could identify and share in Jesus' own sufferings and passion. These difficulties, however, were life-giving as in the first reading when Jacob's own response to God's command to go to Egypt took him through difficult times. His faith in God led him not only to a joyful reunification with his son, but brought life to many. Likewise is Jesus' promise of the Spirit of life as guide and companion to His disciples.

Christ continues to invite us to His life and mission. It may not be to another land but it is to a life manifesting His life-giving presence to those whom we encounter.