The first reading focuses on the hope that God is waiting patiently as He desires to share His divine life with us. God's promise to bring peace, healing and restoration of wholeness in our lives is being fulfilled in the person of Jesus, the Son of God.

As Jesus goes around healing, teaching and proclaiming the reality of the Kingdom of God in our midst, He recognises among us the lost, the dejected, and the troubled souls wandering aimlessly. Compassion and passion for saving us from such misery drives Jesus to summon His disciples and give them the power to bring back the lost and heal the broken hearted.

Today Jesus summons us to the work of evangelisation by giving us the power to teach, heal and proclaim the Good News wherever we are. We are to bring healing simply by listening empathically to another person; speaking words of consolation and encouragement, or giving an attentive presence to the person we meet while accepting and truly 'seeing' the person as he or she is, even if we have nothing much to say.

Today we celebrate the memorial of St Francis Xavier, the patron saint of all of us - Missionary Disciples - who said: "will go anywhere and do anything to communicate the love of Jesus to those who do not know Him or have forgotten Him." Falling deeply in love with Jesus daily makes us hear the Good News that God is Love.