I recently read in Mark's account of Jesus that he went to a lake, taught many people there and then, at a customs station, invited the customs officer to go with him. Before that, Jesus had already invited other men. I imagine how the first ones invited were proud to belong to this teacher who spoke there at the lake in front of many people. On the political context: the country was under foreign occupation by the Romans and customs officers were indeed members of the people who collaborated with the occupiers. So presumably Jesus' invitation to this customs official did not exactly cause enthusiasm but rather horror or anger among those first invited. But the boss was in the lead. So everyone had to arrange themselves accordingly for this new learning community. Challenging. Maybe you also have people in your environment whom you would not choose yourself and who challenge you. Consider it as an opportunity for growth.
I wish you an extraordinary day!
