No doubt we have all had those moments when we have worked so hard to achieve our goals and yet, come up empty handed. It can be exhausting, trying our best and not seeing any results. We can feel the weariness in Simon’s voice when he says to Jesus: ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’
Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets. Simon and his crew were well past the point of giving up. When they encountered Jesus, they were cleaning up and getting ready to go home. And yet, they took the time to help this itinerant preacher, allowing him to use their boat as a platform from which to share his message. They offered whatever energy they had left after a long night to create space for a meaningful encounter between Jesus and the crowds. And then, with only Jesus’ word, they agreed to try their again.
‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’
When we are weary and ready to give up. When we want to just clean up and go home. Who inspires us to go that one step forward? What enables us to do one thing more to create space for possibility? On whose word would we be willing to try again even when we are weary and exhausted?
The weary and exhausted Simon and his crew try again. With Jesus in the boat this leads to a catch that is more than they could ask or imagine. Overwhelmed by the bounty they call their friends for help to bring it to the shore. It is a miracle. Simon knows he is not worthy and tells Jesus so. Who among us really is?
Still, all of this, the willingness to try again, the bounty of fish, the recognition of not being worthy, none of these is actually the point of this story. Jesus did not come to dwell among us so that we could achieve earthly goals and acknowledge our unworthiness. Jesus came to inspire metanoia – a change of heart. Jesus came to invite us into a deeper way of being in this world. Jesus came to create spaces where we, like Simon and his friends, choose to leave behind the earthly bounty to follow Jesus on a different path with different priorities and different goals, a path where we can catch people.
Fishing for and catching people is not an earthly goal. It is a challenge to invite others into that process of metanoia, that change of heart that moves people in a new direction, with different priorities and different goals. It is a risk to ask people to love their neighbour in ways that might require compromise and perhaps even sacrifice. It takes a certain level of commitment, perseverance, and openness to choose the Way of Jesus over the way of the world and invite others to join this path. Simon, James, and John were not just leaving their worldly life to follow Jesus, they were committing to a life in which they would invite others to participate in metanoia, that change of heart!
In a time when we may be weary from the challenges of the world, Jesus still invites us to journey with him where we can fish for and catch people. What does this work look like today? In what ways does metanoia, that change of heart, need to happen now? What priorities and goals should we be setting for ourselves to better reflect the Way of Jesus in 2025?
As we deal with trade wars, elections, the implications of climate change, attacks on diverse populations, the neglect of vulnerable peoples and more, there are a plethora of opportunities to fish for and catch people. The Good of News of God in Jesus Christ can still be proclaimed in transformative ways by those who recognise that Jesus came to bring hope, possibility, and love to the world, that Jesus came to bring metanoia, a change of heart to those open to his transforming message.
Following Jesus, this happens when we prioritise the needs of the vulnerable, trusting that they are worthy of clothing, food, and basic necessities simply because they are human. This happens when we stand up for those who are marginalised and demand that they are treated with respect because they too are created in the image and likeness of God. This happens when we challenge ourselves and others to honour the wisdom of God’s Creation, transforming our relationship to its inherent gifts.
This happens when we are open to metanoia through the Good News and perpetually commit to leave behind the way of the world to follow the Way of Jesus Christ. May we be continually open to the opportunities God creates for us to fish for and catch people, to invite new priorities, and new goals to be embodied in this world. This we pray as we sing: (VT) 545 Here I am, Lord