Answering the Call

Picture yourself fishing on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. You’ve had a difficult day and have caught very few fish. You think and do things inconsistent with following God and being the devout person you desire to be. You mumble and complain, feeling sorry for yourself.

Suddenly, a stranger walks up to you. You feel incredible love radiating from this Person. You see it in His eyes. He looks right through you with warm, glistening eyes and smiles. He speaks: “Come follow me!”

All you think is, “How is this possible?  Even if I wanted to, I have a family, responsibilities. I don’t know this Person. Where is the logic in following Him?”

Responding to Him

While this scenario is more dramatic than most of us would ever encounter, at some level and in some way, Jesus is calling you right now to follow Him without reservation.

You may ask: What about my problems? My financial responsibilities? My family? How is it possible?

This is my question to you: Do you choose your problems and challenges or do you choose Jesus? When we say “Yes” to the call of Jesus, we are like the Blessed Mother in her great assent: “Let it be done to me according to your word.” We don’t understand, but know we don’t have to understand. All we need is to be obedient.

When we say “Yes” to Jesus, our world changes. We may expect our problems to disappear immediately. That usually doesn’t happen, but our attitude toward them changes. We don’t give them the power we had previously given them.

No Guarantees

So many people are trapped by the desire for a divine plan to be rolled out immediately. We want to know all is going to work out and have a step-by-step road map. It doesn’t work that way because we must learn faith and trust. As the Book of Hebrews tells us, it is impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6).

Rather, our focus needs to be on taking one step at a time.

Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, / a light for my path.”

In biblical times, lamps were tied to people’s feet at night, which would project a few yards of light, but it was impossible to see much beyond that distance. Trust that God will lead you in the darkness.

I had an interesting dream in which I was driving a car filled with people. I was at the top of a major hill and had to choose one of two roads on which to proceed. The first was at the center of the hill. It looked like the best decision. At the hill’s midpoint, the road was wide and straight. However, I couldn’t see very far past where the road started due to fog and clouds.

Something made me not trust that choice, even though it looked safe and looked to be the obvious choice. I decided to get out of the car before we started the trek down the hill. I stood on the edge of the hill, and there was a break in the fog. The road only went a short distance and then plunged and ended. We would have gone into the ocean and certain death. It looked simple, but it was anything but an easy road.

I shuddered and went to the other road. It was not wide but narrow and very winding with hairpin curves. As I approached the road’s beginning, before going down the hill, a man got out of the car and starting leading me, walking ahead of me, directing every part of the drive. I felt safe. It was Jesus with a big smile on His face.

Who Will Lead You?

Life is about making a decision about who will or what will lead you. Will it be you, thinking you know best, taking the road that looks the easiest but is actually a disaster? Or will it be letting Jesus guide you because you know you can’t do it on your own?

We can choose to focus on our problems and only let Jesus in when everything is perfect – which will never happen. Or we can realize that we will always have issues and choose Jesus to lead us.

Okay, so we make the right decision and choose Jesus. Now what? We pray and let Him lead us.  Don’t try to figure it out. Go at God’s speed. It might be slow or it might not be.

Essential Steps

The first step is to pray fervently and expect an answer. The Lord will reveal Himself to you in a mighty way. The Holy Spirit will lead you to all truth. He will take you by the hand and lead you to Jesus and the Blessed Mother.

John 14:6 “The advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name; he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”

The second step is to say “Yes” to your passion. God will never give you an area completely foreign to where He has previously led you. It might be something someone suggests to you. It might be an area you always wanted to go into but didn’t have the time, ability, or courage about which to take action.

Often circumstances will open the door to change and a new direction to which God is calling you.

New Directions

A number of years ago, a woman in her fifties told me about something that had dramatically impacted her life; namely, she was fired from her job.

She explained that she had been working for more than thirty years and had never been unemployed. She admitted she didn’t have a clue about how to find a new job—everything from writing a resume, interview skills, finding the right company, etc.

She then said something very powerful: “I know others are like me, and I want to help build a ministry to help those like me who are older and don’t know where to start and what to do.”

Awesome! With her as a catalyst, the lives of hundreds were changed. The woman helped us organize the ministry logistically. We found people with human resource experience, leaders who knew how to coach people, technical people who helped with LinkedIn and other social media platforms, as well as many other volunteers.

As a result of this woman’s “Yes,” many hundreds of people have been hired and even more have enhanced their personal skills.

The Biblical Talents

God will use whatever skills and experience we have, as displayed in the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. How do you know what to do? All you need is to say “Yes” to Jesus, and it will happen gently. Remember it is Jesus who will never break a “bruised reed” (Matthew 12:20).

We can do many things to build the kingdom: providing hospitality, comforting the bereaved, visiting the sick, providing employment assistance, helping young families, teaching religious education, getting involved with social justice, participating in prayer groups, serving as lectors and Eucharistic ministers, working with the homeless and countless other possibilities. You say “Yes” to Jesus, and He will do the rest!

Fullness of Life

Life is meant to be exciting and abundant. It always is when we are aligned with Jesus and doing His will for our lives. Do not worry. Do not be afraid. When we give our time, talents and treasure, God showers us with blessings!

2 Corinthians 9: 6-7 “Consider this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.  Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver.”

I have found that when the Holy Spirit guides us to minister to God’s people, we receive the fruit of the Spirit that teaches us how to love passionately.

Let’s look to the Book of Samuel:

1 Samuel 3:10, “The LORD came and stood there, calling out as before: Samuel, Samuel! Samuel answered, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening.’”

God is speaking to you right now, calling you to an abundant life. Calling you to love passionately and receive God’s passionate love. Say “Yes” to His calling. You will never regret it!