If I were going to choose a theme for our readings and Gospel this week, I think it would be “The different ways that Jesus calls us to himself”. We’re not all quite as fortunate as Andrew and Simon to receive a direct verbal invitation from our Lord (although it can happen), most of our callings seem to come about a bit differently. We might receive such a thing in a vision or dream the way that Samuel did, or perhaps there is a revelatory experience we encounter in our lives where we can simply sense that our Lord is calling us. Often it comes about as a result of our seeking that which we know is missing from our lives, and our Lord reveals himself to us in our journey of faith which ensues.
Our Lord does want us to seek him out; He has already provided us with the means to do so through His sacrifice for each of us, and through His word that we can immerse ourselves in through the reading of scripture. The path is different for each one of us, and that is because He knows us well enough to know the best way for each of us to seek and learn and develop in our relationship with Him. It is not an easy process or journey, and it is not supposed to be. Our best lessons, the ones we remember the most, are those which we learned through effort and perhaps even hardship.
One of the key areas in our journey that often requires effort, and can seem like hardship at first, is the changing of our behaviors. As we learn more about our Lord and we digest His teaching we will see areas in our lives that require change, and perhaps even the pruning out of some bad habits. We need to remember that pruning is the surest way to induce growth in something. It stimulates and causes new branches to form which may well be better than the old branch and produce fruit that would otherwise have been impossible. It can seem like a harsh process as the old is cut away and tossed into the fire, but when we see the new branches form and the lush fruits that accompany them we will also see that it was well worth it. We cannot hope to accomplish something this radical in terms of our spiritual growth on our own; It can only come about with prayer and asking Jesus for his help and guidance as we work our way through it. Our effort needs to be there, but make no mistake, it will take His help to affect the changes that are most needed within ourselves.
What we must always keep in the front of our minds, is that Jesus desires for each and every one of us to come to know Him and be saved through Him. There are no exceptions to this rule, no special cases in which our sins are so much worse than those of others that they are unforgiveable, no circumstance in our past that would preclude our Lord’s desire for us to come to Him. He wants us all – period, and the fact is, He proved it. We were each purchased at a very high price: His very life when He shed his blood for us on the cross. There can be no greater proof given.
For our part, we must work through this lifelong process of drawing close to our Lord and ensuring that each of our places are swept as clean as possible to be a fit dwelling for His Spirit to reside within each of us. We do this through examination of our actions, and when needed, the reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Moreover, we are ever watchful. We look for Him in all that we encounter, and respond accordingly by following His teachings so that we treat others who are also created in His image in such a way as to reflect how we would treat our Lord himself. We each continue to learn and grow in Him, and when we hear His voice through our life experiences, we are each prepared, and respond – “Speak Lord – your servant is listening.”
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The Deacons Bench 