We all enter this life with many opportunities and paths we can take, and most of them are good. God will bless us in whatever we do that is honourable and positive. God has some expectations of each and every one of us, but they be expressed in different ways. A few individuals, however, have been marked out from the moment of their creation for something very important. Isaiah speaks of a prophetic figure that will guide not only Israel but the nations too. The early Christians saw Christ in this way. But no mission is unimportant, and we all have something important to give.

As great as John the Baptist was, his role was to prepare the way for Jesus. His birth was announced by an angel, his conception was miraculous, since his parents were aged and his mother barren. But his role was secondary; he was to prepare the way for one far greater — Jesus. That did not bother him at all — he was quite content to spend his life pointing to another and announcing his presence. His life was not about self-fulfillment but doing the will of God. This is a perfect example for our own time, when self-promotion seems to be ever more important. Our mission is to do the will of God, nothing more, nothing less. The will of God is always that we serve the common good and be a source of hope and assistance to others.