When God has an important message to get across to us, how do you suppose we receive it? A letter? A phone call? An e-mail message? A dream? A vision? A whisper?
In today’s readings, we find three engaging examples of ancient announcements God set to significant people. The vision of the Lord sitting on a lofty throne left Isaiah awed by such majesty. The sight of Jesus blinded Paul as he traveled to Damascus. After a long night of catching nothing, Peter hauls in a catch that nearly sinks his boat, leaving him dumbfounded.
Awed by such a sight, Isaiah bemoans, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips!” Paul admitted the error of his way when he confessed, “I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” Simon Peter reacts in much the same way when he begs Jesus, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
We remember these men for their holiness, not their sinfulness. In spite of how they see themselves before God, all three of them then accepted God’s call. When the Lord asked, “Whom shall I send?” Isaiah replied, “Here I am, send me!” Paul set right to work, working harder than any other apostle, proclaiming wherever he went that Jesus is Lord, claiming, “I have toiled harder than any of them.” Peter did the unthinkable, leaving behind his boat to follow Jesus.
When God called them, they didn’t hang up, or put God on hold. They answered. And the world is a better place today because they did.
Admittedly, God isn’t likely to use such extraordinary means to get our attention today. Very few, if any, of us have had a vision like Isaiah, or a knee dropping encounter like Paul did, or a fishing finale equal to Peter’s. instead God is likely to get in touch with us in a quieter manner.
God’s call is more likely to be that of a whisper than a thunderclap. God speaks to us in the living words of sacred scripture. Frequently God calls us through the voice of a friend, a parent, a counselor, a spouse, a relative, a teacher, or even a homilist. That is why listening is so important. In the midst of our noisy world, we must give God the chance to be heard.
When we have listened and heard the word of God, our reaction may be like that of Isaiah, Paul or Peter. We may think of ourselves as being unworthy, reluctant, or unwilling to respond, yet God will say to us, “I need you.”
The lesson here is about our vocation, which is to proclaim each in our own way, the good news of Jesus Christ. Jesus still needs roving ambassadors like Paul, and fishers like Peter to haul in those who have yet to be touched by his gift of salvation. Jesus needs you.
Certainly, Jesus is not calling most of you to be ordained or to the religious life or even to be lay ministers. However God is calling each one of us to work just as hard as Paul and Peter did to fill the boat of the church with renewed and new members. Do not be afraid to echo Isaiah’s response, “Here I am Lord, send me!”
Send me to share what I have with the less fortunate.
Send me to give a listening ear to someone who is hurting.
Send me to share the good news of your love and forgiveness with someone who is not baptized.
Send me to share the joy of the Eucharist with someone who is homebound.
Send me to feed the hungry.
Send me to proclaim the good news by teaching our faith to others.
Send me to protect the life of the unborn.
Send me to pray for those who see themselves as unworthy of your love.
Send me to give a helping hand to a neighbor.
Send me to share my talents so that others can see your majesty.
Send me to touch the lives of the unbelievers in our midst.
Send me to invite back those who are absent from our gathering.
Sin detracts us from being the good people God made us to be so I wouldn’t be surprised if my words have fallen on deaf ears and you are thinking to yourself, “Someone else can do that.” When we ignore God’s call to actively live our faith, we risk diminishing ourselves just as Isaiah and Peter once did.
That is the point a priest once made when visiting a member of his parish who was no longer attending Mass. As they sat in front of a blazing fire, he raked a flaming ember out of the fire. The two men sat in silence as they watched the ember die down, while the fire kept blazing. Getting the point, the man said that he would be back at Mass the following Sunday. He understood that alone it is nearly impossible to keep the flame of faith alive in our hearts.
So, imagine what an impact we could have on our own community as well as ourselves if we would all say honestly to God, “Here I am, Lord, send me!”