May Jesus Christ be
praised and may his holy Mother pray for us.
The scriptures are
filled with fascinating characters. We
have Samuel, who will become a great prophet, and we have Eli, the priest of
the Temple. We have Paul and the
Corinthians. We have John the Baptist,
and Andrew, and John, and Simon Peter.
We have all of these fascinating characters who are part of the great
story of the love that God has for his people.
The scriptures are filled with fascinating characters.
The scriptures are
filled with people who heard the call of God.
Samuel was asleep when the voice of the Lord awakened him. Andrew and John were standing with John the
Baptist. They were his followers. Paul was on the road to Damascus, and Simon
Peter the fisherman, was fishing. On
ordinary days and while doing ordinary things they heard the call of God. On ordinary days and while doing ordinary
things, the most extraordinary thing happened.
The scriptures are filled with people who heard the call of God.
The scriptures are
filled with people who followed the call of God completely. When Samuel was awakened by the voice of the
Lord, he ultimately responded with a listening heart. When Andrew and John left John the Baptist to
follow the Lord Jesus, they never returned to John the Baptist again. Paul would never be Saul again, and Simon
Peter could never be simply Simon again.
They would struggle. They would
fall at times. But they could never return
to the life that was theirs before they responded to the call of God. They could never return to the lives that
were theirs, because their lives now belonged to the Most High God. They had been called and they had
responded. The scriptures are filled
with people who followed the call of God completely.
The scriptures are
filled with people who heard the call of God, who followed the call of God
completely, and who announced the call of God to others. The gift of God was shared. The call of God was announced. John the Baptist declared the presence of the
Lamb of God to his disciples, John and Andrew.
Andrew immediately went to find his brother Simon so that Andrew could
bring Simon to Jesus. The scriptures are
filled with people who heard the call of God, who followed the call of God
completely and who announced the call of God to others.
The Church of God, and
each of her parishes, is filled with fascinating characters. We are here, dear brothers and sisters,
because the love of God has called us to be part of the great story of the
great love that God has for his people.
We have responded and we are responding.
We want to respond completely.
Like Peter and Paul we struggle and like Peter and Paul, at times, we
fall. But we have responded and we are
responding. We have heard the call of
the Lord. We are responding to the call
of the Lord. Let us, dear brothers and
sisters, on this ordinary day, announce the call of the Lord and bring everyone
to Jesus. Amen.
Preached
at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Monroe, NC
