Forming Good Stewards - This week's gospel passage

"Master, we have worked hard all night and have
caught nothing, but at your command I will lower
the nets!" Luke 5:1-11

Fishing is a difficult and dangerous way to make a living. The profits sometimes do not justify the perspiration and the peril. And it is highly unlikely that a man who has spent his life fishing on a small [14 miles north to south and 7 miles east to west], pear-shaped sea in the northern part of Galilee would accept the advice of a carpenter about where and when to lower his nets. That is why Simon’s response to Jesus is such a strong statement of faith. When Simon Peter realized that Jesus was calling him to be his disciple he fell to his knees and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man”. When Isaiah heard the Lord’s call, he proclaimed his unworthiness. The Lord asked, Whom shall I send?” Isaiah responded, “Here I am Lord, send me!’ Isaiah and Simon Peter teach us that responding to God and being a disciple of Jesus Christ, is not about being worthy. It is about being willing. If we wait until we feel worthy, we may never begin. If we are willing, we have already begun.