9 February 2025 #wecandothis
Some days I feel like Isaiah: it’s hard to do the work the Lord has called me to do. There are times I’d rather stay home, lay claim to a mental health day, and just scroll through Facebook reels of recipes, funny Grandparenting videos, and Grey’s Anatomy clips. It’s true. Some days I’m not sure I capable enough to do what needs to be done. Like Isaiah, I think, “Woe is me. I am doomed. For I am a (wo)man of unclean lips…” I’ve backspaced through many a text and erased many an e-mail detailing my inabilities and shortcomings. I even wonder sometimes that when Fr. Dave jests that he’s firing me for some crazy (but fun!) evangelization idea or a pastoral path that just skirts the hem canon law, I really should take him up on the offer. Like Simon Peter I want to fall to my knees, eyes to the ground, and whisper, “Depart from me Fr. Dave, for I am a sinful (wo)man.”
In the height of his ministry, I’m sure there were days Peter wanted to hide away, light his prayer candle, scroll through…. scrolls, and ruminate on those times he failed and failed miserably. Maybe he did. But mostly he didn’t. It seems Simon Peter got up every morning, started the daily routine, sang his praises to the Lord, and got on with the work the Lord set before him.
And gosh, what an adventurous life Peter had. St. Paul too. When Paul writes, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective,” he means to say that his failures and faults are wrapped up alongside his wins and witness - and that’s what makes this life in Christ an exhilarating adventure! We never know what the day will bring or who the Lord will put in our path, but it’s always someone who needs what we have to offer.
You see, when I walk through the office door or sit in my prayer chair to pray and write, I hear the voice of Lord in my heart saying the same thing he replied to Peter’s little pity-party in today’s Gospel: “Do not be afraid. Follow me.” All will be well. I’ve got your back. Go! Form disciples of all your people.
We’re knee-deep into a “season of change” with a renovated sacred space, new staff, and some parish-wide objectives that coincide with the realities of our faith, parish, and culture in Hastings. We’re asking some things of you that seem outlandish or that seem like they cannot be done. That might lead us to think, “Woe is me (Isaiah). I am not fit (Paul). I don’t have what it takes (Peter).” We would be wrong. Isaiah, Peter, and Paul changed a culture with the graces of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. And with the chutzpah of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, all things are possible for us too.
#wecandothis