All those years  watching him grow from a tiny baby to a young man – seeing his character develop and his stature increase – the words I heard before his birth – the way he was during childhood – it was beginning to come together.

It began to surface when he was only twelve.  Our family was on the way  home, when we realized he wasn’t with us.  My heart sank.  Where could he be?   When we found him, He seemed unconcerned as he told me that he was doing his father’s business.   His mind was packed with so much information, it made even the most esteemed teachers wonder about him.

Now his true occupation was being realized.  His ministry had begun.  His life was no longer his own.  Daily he was surrounded by crowds waiting to hear what he had to say.   Every hour was consumed with requests for healing and miracles.  He often didn’t find time to sleep   As a concerned mother, I took the family to talk to him about this whole thing and try to make it easier for him.  People were beginning to talk.  They even said he had lost his mind!

When he spoke these words, my heart sank again.  He said, ““Who are my mother and my brothers?”  And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

At first I was crushed by his words, but on the road back home it occurred to me that he was again doing his father’s work.  All the events leading up to his existence were finally beginning to make sense to me.   All those things that I held tightly in my heart were now coming to fruition.  His words weren’t meant to hurt me.  They were an invitation to the entire population to become heirs of his heavenly kingdom.  His true vocation had begun .