Can the Church despise orders from the Lord?

Ways to belong to the flock: Carry out Orders

Wednesday, 4th week in Eastertide (if it were not 25th April!) 

Acts 12:24- 13:5a; Jn 12: 44-50

If it were not to be April 25th, then we would have reflected on the third in the series of instructions to belong to the Flock of the One Shepherd...it is to Receive and Carry out Orders. 

A life of faith is all about getting orders and carrying them out. We find in the first reading of the day that the Apostles got orders directly from the Holy Spirit, to set apart Barnabas and Paul for a particular task. Elsewhere too in the Acts we see similar accounts of getting orders for the regular running of the Church. In the Gospel, Jesus clarifies that he got his orders from his father and instructs us that we too need to follow suit. Receive orders and carry them out!

Two things can hinder us from Receiving Orders: One, not hearing: because we do not listen sufficiently. We are so busy with running our own show that we are thoughtless about the orders that direct us constantly! 

The second reason is more serious: pretending not to hear! This is a conscious despise of the orders that are given us. The Lord, the Spirit of the Lord keeps inspiring within us or keeps supplying us with clear cut directions and orders to be on the right path. At times owing to the inconvenience it can cause, or the difficulty it will put us through, we pretend not to hear those orders and proceed with what we think best. And when things turn out for the worst, we begin to panic and blame everyone else, including God.

Can we train ourselves to receive orders and carry them out in our daily life?