Homily for the 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Lately, I’ve been trying not to get discouraged. It’s been difficult. As the director of a retreat center, I entered the New Year thinking I had all of the weekends filled with retreats. I was looking forward to taking care of our many guests and retreatants. January, however, my time was instead filled with taking care of cancellations, prompted by the new Omicron surge. I also thought I had a complete staff, but a few have left. Anyone who is doing any kind of hiring realizes that finding good replacements is difficult. My mantra during the whole month echoed the words of Saint Therese of Lisieux: Don’t get discouraged!
I don’t think it’s just me. It’s a crazy time. The world is filled with confusion, uncertainty, and division. It is easy to get discouraged.
So as I get ready to preach this 5th Sunday, I’m looking at the assigned scripture through the lens of ‘discouragement’. And finding some much-needed encouragement.
Jesus came to Simon Peter in his discouragement
In the gospel, the disciples on Lake Gennesaret had every reason to be discouraged. They had fished all night and caught nothing.
Jesus came and got into Simon Peter’s boat. If you think about this, it is a little presumptuous. This is Simon Peter’s place of employment. It would be like Jesus entering the cab of a truck driver. Or the office cubical of an accountant. Or sitting at the teacher’s desk in your classroom.
Then, once in the boat, he does something even more outlandish. He begins to tell these fishermen how to fish. “Go into the deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Again, it would be like him telling a truck driver how to drive his truck, an accountant how to balance her books, or a teacher how to teach his class.
Once the disciples follow the instructions of Jesus, they catch an abundance of fish. They were astonished. He then tells them they are to not just catch an abundance of fish, but an abundance of souls. “I will make you fishers of men.”
What transformed their discouragement into astonishment? There are three takeaways.
First, they let Jesus come into the boat. Letting Jesus come into your ‘boat’ is sometimes not that easy. It means we need to surrender. It means we’re not in control. It means we need to stop being discouraged and instead be open to the abundance that comes from God. At times, we choose to sulk alone in our own discouragement.
The second is equally challenging. Do what Jesus says. Too often we say, “I know how to drive my own truck!” Jesus doesn’t have any business in my ‘business’. Yet Simon Peter, after sharing with Jesus his pessimism on the outcome of casting out one more time, says, “But at your command, we will lower the nets.” Too often we’re too discouraged to allow God to direct us toward an unlikely or even an impossible outcome.
The third takeaway is sometimes overlooked. In the midst of Simon Peter’s discouragement, Jesus came to him. God comes to us in our times of discouragement. Yet too often we are so focused on the dark cloud, we don’t see the sun just beyond the haze.
God came to Isaiah in the midst of his discouragement
There is a greater lesson on discouragement in the first reading, the powerful call story of Isaiah (Is 6:1-8). It begins with a statement that speaks volumes: “In the year King Uzziah died.” Why is this significant? Uzziah was one of the very few ‘good kings’ in the history of Israel. Under his reign Judah experienced peace and prosperity for fifty-two years. When King Uzziah died, many were worried that their peace and prosperity would die with him. The future seemed confused and uncertain. The people were divided. Many became discouraged.
We could begin a call story today with a similar phrase. In the year the pandemic raged across the world, the future seemed confused and uncertain. The people were divided. Many became discouraged.
How did God respond to the momentous death of King Uzziah? God came to Isaiah in a powerful vision. Isaiah said, “I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne.” The message: King Uzziah might have died, but God is still in control. God is still “seated on a high and lofty throne.”
Isaiah continues, “The train of his garment [was] filling the temple.” The ‘train of his garment’ symbolizes the glory of God. The glory of God fills every available space. Translation: Even in this confusing and uncertain time, the glory of God will not be diminished.
In this throne room, “Seraphim were stationed above.” Seraphim are fiery angles, the most powerful of all the angels God created. These seraphim cried one to the other the words we still say today during Mass: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts”. These words have been sung by God’s people for almost three thousand years. “At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook and the house was filled with smoke.”
If you place yourself in this magnificent scene, there is absolutely no place for discouragement.
When the people were worried about the future, God called Isaiah to be his prophet.
The voice from the throne said, “Whom shall I send?” Whom shall I send to bring hope to a people filled with uncertainty? Whom shall I send to bring unity to a people who are divided?
After some deliberation, Isaiah said, “Here I am Lord. Send me.”
The Lord spoke these words to Isaiah. The Lord is still speaking these words to you and me. “Whom shall I send?” God not only comes to us when we are discouraged, God calls toward a new mission and purpose – toward “an abundant catch of fish”. Today, people are also uncertain about their future and discouraged. God comes to you. God is calling you.
We enter this church to celebrate Mass. God the Father sits on his throne. The glory of God’s only begotten son fills this space. We sing with the angels, “Holy, holy, holy. Lord God of hosts.” The voice of the Lord resounds, “Whom shall I send?” Will you respond, “Here I am. Send me.” Or will you continue to remain discouraged?