Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion; for we are many.”

Mark 5:9

The Call of Legion

 
"Go home to your friends, and tell them how much
God has done for you," Jesus said that day,
To the man named Legion, no longer touched
By demons, ready to follow, obey.
Sometimes following means returning home,
Not travelling, seeing great miracles,
Watching God's Son on his way to the throne,
Witnessing glory's incarnate pinnacle.
The call to follow him may mean caring 
For our community, living in trust, 
Telling our story, and humbly sharing
Our life with those he's entrusted to us.
Legion obeyed his call, shared his story,
Legions now join in giving God glory.

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This sonnet came to me as I reflected on the healing of the Gerasene Demoniac, and particularly Jesus’ response when he begged Jesus to follow him. Jesus said to him:

Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you.

Mark 5:19

Sometimes, following Jesus means going home, doesn’t it? Going home and sharing with our friends what the Lord has done for us. It’s not as exciting as getting in a boat and travelling with Jesus, which is what the man formerly known as Legion desperately wanted to do. He won’t have the privilege of witnessing Jesus feeding the multitudes, or walking on water, or seeing any of the other great miracles that Jesus performs on his way to the cross. That is not his call, nor is it ours. Sometimes, following Jesus means leaving all of that, and taking the less glamorous path of quietly caring for our family, serving our neighbors, telling our faith story, and engaging in everyday acts of love unseen by the world. This is the call of Legion, and it is the call of legions who have come after him. May we be faithful to our call, whatever it may be.