There is a powerful question presented in the first reading today: powerful because it come from the mouth of God Himself. While he is appearing to the prophet Isaiah, the Lord asks, “Whom shall we send? Who will go for us?”
This theme of calling or vocation, runs throughout the readings, as we hear St. Paul describe his experience of being summoned by God to spread the gospel to the whole gentile world. Then, of course, we also read about the calling of St. Peter, who follows Jesus after the miraculous catch of fish. Hearing these three vocation stories gives us an opportunity to reflect on our own calling to serve the Lord, whether that be as priests and religious, married people, or consecrated single life. Even if we have already chosen our vocation, even if it has been many years since we made that decision, it still serves us well to examine our response to the Lord’s invitation, every day. Through the grace of our Baptism, completed by our confirmation, all of us have been sent out by God. Whatever it is that we do, we are to do it for the greater glory and honor of God.
So, what does this mean? What does it mean to say that we are called to serve God in every way possible. Well, some of you are married, others are hoping some day to marry. Here’s what serving God means: it means that it is not good enough simply to be husbands. You must try to be the best husband possible, emptying yourself for your wife, serving God by serving her. Put her first. Women should always come first. Just as Eve was God’s gift to Adam, so too, your wife is to you. They are the sacred vessels of life. Love her, and love God by honoring her. For your part, women, don’t just be wives. Be the best wife the world has ever seen. Honor, love, and serve your husband as the daily expression of your love for God. To both husbands and wives: Do not compete with one another! Do not try to dominate your spouse! Support and serve each other and see it as the way you honor God and spread the gospel.
Some of you are parents, or hoping to become parents. It is not enough to give birth and sustain the life of a child. You are also called to serve God through your children. Be the best parents possible. Being a good parent means teaching your kids the faith, forming them in virtue, disciplining them and raising them to be good citizens and future saints. Being a good parent does not mean becoming your child’s personal slave, fulfilling their every whim, or making them little kings and queens! Remember that God has entrusted an immortal soul for you to protect, form and nourish. As you do this in the million ordinary and thankless tasks of everyday family life, recall you are serving God, who created your children.
Right now many here are students. Some find study easier than others. That doesn’t make any difference. You must be the best student you can be, developing your own talents. Your teachers may tell you you have to work hard to succeed in the world. I am telling you that this is only a part of the story. You must work hard, not simply to succeed in the world, but to serve the Lord.
Finally, some of our young people, and perhaps even some of our not-so-young people are being called to serve the Lord as priests and religious. In a parish this size, I am certain there are quite a number of men and women that God is inviting to this special mode of living for Him. If you think God might be calling you to the priesthood or religious life, do not be afraid. It is a life of incredible happiness and fulfillment and you will be amazed how God will use your gifts to build up his Church and heal those who are hurting. Parents, if you think your child might have a religious or priestly vocation, support them in finding out.
Do not discourage them, do not be afraid. Your child will find the most happiness and fulfillment in the vocation God has called them to, even if it’s not the vocation you might have planned or hoped they would grow into.
We are all called to serve the King of Kings. We don’t simply perform a job. We are called to serve the Lord and glorify him in what we do. If we are priests, we must be the best priests possible, using our particular gifts for Him. If we are auto mechanics, we must be the best mechanic possible serving God by taking caring of people’s cars and keeping them safe. Some of you are doctors, and lawyers, and nurses and school teachers. We don’t just need doctors and nurses and school teachers, and lawyers and accountants. We need the best doctors and nurses and school teachers and and lawyers and accountants. Whatever we do in life, we must do it to the best of our ability because we are doing it in service to the Lord.
We only have one shot at life. We only get one life. We need to make the very best of our lives and this happens when we serve God in every aspect of our lives.
People often get a little squeamish with this concept that we are all called to serve the Lord in our respective vocations. We often think we are not good enough. Surely spreading the gospel must be a job for a saint but not for little old me! All three readings this week answer that question. Isaiah was not good enough at first. But when an angel touched his mouth with an ember from the fire, he was made clean. In the second reading Paul reminds us that he started off by persecuting Christians. He was not a good man. He would round up men, women and children and bring them to trial. Paul was a spectator at the martyrdom of St. Stephen, but he cheered on the mob and left excited to find the next victim. But despite all this Jesus transformed Paul into an apostle. In the Gospel, Peter wants Jesus to leave him because he is so aware of his own sin. Jesus basically says, “No way. I have work for you, You will be catching men.”
Jesus says to us, “Stop hiding behind your human failures. How dare you say that I cannot send you? I am God. I have work for you to do. I will cleanse you. I will send you.”
We have work to do. We have been sent by the same God who sent Isaiah, who empowered Paul, who made Peter a fisher of men.
We need to stop limiting ourselves to the here and now. We need to do the work of God. Every part of creation has its own truth and goodness and beauty, including us human beings. The problem is that many of us refuse to recognize the dependence of creation on God. Creation without the Creator fades into nothingness. People who attempt to live separated from God condemn themselves to meaningless lives.
We are called, we are sent, to lead people to meaning, to lead people to God. Whatever it is that we do in life, from something as major as marriage or priesthood or religious life, to something as minor as finishing a school assignment, we do it in service to God. Every action of our lives has purpose, not just for ourselves, but also for others who are seeking the Lord. We are meant to be fishers of men, each in our own vocation. Let us pray today for the courage to respond to this calling by doing all for the greater honor and glory of God.
