Thursday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time
When God calls us to make a sacrifice, the Lord in his goodness will abundantly bless us, at least as he knows is best. After toiling all night fishing on Lake Gennesaret, Peter comes up empty. Following his own initiative, Peter had nothing to show for all the labor that he spent. Well, when I was growing up, I would often go fishing with my father, so I can sympathize with Peter. After many hours of being out on the water, I would be totally exhausted; and if we did not catch anything for the day, I would usually be somewhat frustrated and dejected. I can only imagine that Peter must have experienced similar feelings.
Afterwards, when Peter was cleaning his equipment (definitely not the most enjoyable part of fishing, I can attest), this man named Jesus comes, asks to use his boat to teach the people, and then commands Peter to cast his nets out into the deep. In Peter’s response, one can almost hear the exasperated tone, as he says, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing.” Casting his nets out again must have been the last thing that Peter wanted to do. But, being called by Jesus to make this sacrifice, he declares, “at your command I will lower the nets.” And miraculously, Peter and his companions caught more fish than their nets and boats could handle. Having been asked to make this sacrifice at Christ’s command rather than at his own initiative, Peter is abundantly blessed.
As is clear from Peter’s new mission to be a fisher of men at the end of the passage, this encounter has symbolic significance beyond literal fishing. Jesus calls Peter to leave behind everything in sacrifice; and, as we know from the rest of the history of the Church, the Lord abundantly blesses Peter in this task and reveals the fruitfulness of Peter’s obedience. And so, for our lives as well, we can be assured that, if we are called to make a sacrifice at God’s command, the Lord will abundantly bless our obedience and will make our lives fruitful beyond our wildest imagination.