Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker movement and an extraordinarily faithful laywoman, was often approached by people who said things to her like, “You are a saint,” “You are so special – a true gift of God as a person.” She hated that! She was quite gruff with those who suggested such things. She’d say, “No, I’m not! I’m no different from you. If you value what I do, go do it yourself. You could, you know.” She detested any language that set her apart from others, because she saw it as a cop-out, a way for people to rationalize why they were not more devoted to easing the suffering of the poorest.

Jesus' disciples were this way at first too. They saw before them what their faithfulness would require and declared that they didn’t have enough faith to consider such choices. “Excuses, excuses,” Jesus tells them, "with faith the size of a mustard seed, you can do anything."