After Judas, the eleven remaining disciples cast lots for his replacement, and the lot fell on Matthias rather that Joseph surnamed Justus. We know little about what happened to Justus afterwards. Kahil Gibran wrote a poem about him. It was not so complimentary, by the way. There are some rumors that he died in the coliseum of Rome. But just imagine getting that close to lose out on a roll of the dice. I am reminded of Doc Graham in Field of Dreams saying to Ray, “ I got so close to my dream.” I think of all those athletes who miss the last shot or drop the winning pass.
We all have moments in our life like Justus or Doc Graham. We can get lost in bitterness or disappointment, but I suspect a man who had the character to even be considered to be the 12th disciple eventually saw being passed over as an opportunity. No matter how profoundly we’ve failed or how deeply we’ve been disappointed, God opens a new door.
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