I carry a prayer in my wallet from the American monk Thomas Merton. It’s a long prayer, so I won’t read it in its entirety, just the highlights.
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end… But I believe that the desire to please you does please you…And I know that if I do this, you will lead me along the right road, though I may know nothing about it. You are always with me, and you will never leave me.”
The spirit of this prayer is the spirit of the Gospel today. The disciples are sent on mission, and there are practical details about what to carry and what not to carry. But the main teaching, for them and for us, is to trust completely in God. To trust in God not just when things are smooth, but when we have no idea where we are going. God gives us a power and an authority when we completely trust in God.