He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him; for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him.

˜ Mark 3:9-10

"You need to learn to delegate!" is a refrain I hear all the time as the Sister Superior of the Community of St. John Baptist. My Sisters constantly remind me that I need to give parts of my workload to them, our staff members, our Associates or our Oblates. It is not easy for me to delegate because I always think I'm the only one who can do things "correctly." My Sisters' persistence reminds me that not only do I need to reduce my workload, but I also need to remember that I am not alone.

In this passage from the Gospel of Mark, we see Jesus doing some delegating. Word of Jesus' miraculous healing power has spread so quickly that he tells the disciples to arrange a boat "so that they would not crush him." He then goes up a mountain, calls twelve of his disciples to him and appoints them as apostles to preach the Good News and cast out demons.

You may wonder: why would Jesus, the incarnation of God Almighty, need to delegate? As an omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient being, God can do anything. Why would God need help?

Jesus shows us, in choosing his apostles, that God has no intention of operating alone. Jesus does not "need" us but instead wants us to be active participants in building the Kingdom of God. If we want things to change, we have to be agents of that change. God shows us the value and holiness of community and relationship through Jesus' ministry on earth. Jesus was never a lone ruler dictating from above. He shows us that we must work as a community.

Reflect: Where in your life could you benefit from working within a group instead of going it alone?

This Lenten Meditation can be found at Episcopal Relief and Development