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Sts. Joseph & Paul Catholic Church |
Homily Archives |
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Ordinary 5 – C “Put out into deeper water and lower your nets.” There's a great story of a tightrope walker, who was challenged to walk a tightrope across Niagara Falls. The day came and everything was in place. Huge steel struts on either side of the falls held the strong-steel tightrope. Television cameras, reporters and a massive crowd lined the falls. However, there was no safety net. The tightrope walker appeared with a wheelbarrow, which he had decided to push in front of him as he walked the rope. The crowd cheered him on, although some begged him not to do it. But one voice in the crowd cried out, "Go on; you can do it. I know you can. Don't listen to them. I have complete faith in you." The tightrope walker turned to the man and said, "You have faith in me? You're certain, I can do it?" The man said, "I'm absolutely certain. I know you can do it!" "OK," said the tightrope walker, "Get into my wheelbarrow with me and I'll wheel you across!" Amazingly, the man climbed into the wheelbarrow, and the tightrope walker wheeled him safely across to the other side. What incredible, courageous, foolhardy faith! The crowd listening to Jesus was so large that Jesus called to the disciples, who had been out all night with their boats fishing, to come and pick him up, so he could teach from their boat. When he finished teaching, he said to Simon, "put out into deeper water and lower your nets for a catch."
If any of you have been on an all
night fishing or hunting trip, or for one reason or another have been
up all night, you know that the disciples must have been tired and
discouraged. The last thing they wanted to do was to go back out and
fish. But the same authority that drew the large crowd to Jesus, drew
Simon to say, "Master, we have been out all night fishing, but at your
command I will lower the nets." So they went out, they lowered their
nets, and they caught so many fish, their nets were at the point of
breaking.
Simon put his total faith in the authority of Jesus, and an impossible task was made possible. This abundant catch of fish was a moment of transforming grace for Simon. Because he listened to the words of Jesus, he made an abundant catch, and he came to believe in the divine power of God. We can see, in this miracle of the great catch, how the seemingly impossible becomes possible with Jesus. But the impossible is not going to just happen in our lives. We cannot just will it, and it will come to be. We must be willing to turn our lives over to the authority of God’s Word. Then, with God, we must be willing to act -- to get into the boat, set out for deeper water, lower our nets, and trust that we’ll catch something. When we turn our lives over to God, we will be amazed at what God will do for us…It may cause us sacrifice…it may challenge…it may ask us to change…and that may be what we are avoiding, but when we trust God, we will be brought to a deeper faith in God. Perhaps the greatest amazement lies in the fact that God chooses ordinary people like you and me as His co-workers in the vineyard. And He uses the ordinary circumstances of our daily lives: -- at home, at work, at school, with our families and friends -- as places where Jesus can speak to us, and we can be brought to a new place with God. We’ve all experienced life moments where we are tired, or anxious, or confused about which way to go. Perhaps we should stop in those moments and listen for the voice of Jesus to say, "I am in this life; I am in the boat; I am in the wheelbarrow with you, so go ahead; set out for deeper waters and lower your nets." .
sdrose@bellsouth.net
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