Trust as friends that the Spirit guides

The texts today from the  Roman Catholic Lectionary are those for the areas of North America where the Acension is celebrated next Sunday. The Acts of the Apostles tells of the process used by the eleven remaining Apostles to select a successor. Luke writes that this was a process of drawing lots. We note that the Apostles prayed for the guidance of the Spirit before they began their seemingly random selection. John Shea, S.J., understands that this action is a sign of trusting the Holy Spirit to guide our decisions. He notes that people tend to make elaborate plans and are prepard to measure twice and cut once. As we satisfy our human insecurities we may adopt a prayerful attitude which will open our eyes to the detail we need to consider before we come to the role of decision by the Spirit. Peter had set out conditions of a long standing personal relationship with Jesus before the selection of Matthais. In the Gospel from John, between the parenthesis of the dual commands of Jesus to love one another we are addressed by Jesus as friends. Scripture scholars note that this title was given only to Abraham in the Hebrew Testament. Our personal relationship with Jesus is built on our experience of His Love. In Jesus Love our service as friend requires trust that the roles we are invited to play in His mission is the fruit of inspiration by the Holy Spirit.