As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him. (MT 4:18-20)
People who have experienced a similar situation than we have or have undergone a similar circumstance seem to better understand us, they get us. They can better relate to what we have been through. They seem to better understand our struggles, our hurts, our pains, our impatience, our sorrows. They understand our hardships, our illnesses, our exhaustion, our heartaches, our losses, our frustration. They understand it because they have been there and have personally suffered through it. That’s what I love about Jesus. He gets us, he understands us. Having been born into our human weakness and frailty, Jesus understands our challenges and limitations, our temptations and frustrations, our shocks and surprises, our fears and our needs. He knows our bodies, our particular circumstance, the problems we face in life, the tough moments we have to face alone. He knows this because he has personally experienced the effects of our fallen and sinful state. Jesus knows the challenges we have gone through. He understands what we are going through right now and everything we will have to face later in life. He understands our lives are busy, our minds are restless, our time is over occupied. In order to help us, he graciously meets us where we are and invites us to follow him to a better place, a better life, a better frame of mind. Jesus will come and meet us at work or school. He will come and visit us in our lives and in our homes. He will come and meet us in our jobs and our occupations. He will come and meet us in any situation and in every circumstance. Don’t you just love that Jesus comes to meet us where we are? That’s what he did when he called the disciples. He met them where they where. It didn’t matter their particular state of life. Although we can learn and grow from the way the Apostles were called, the image of the fishermen leaves us with a beautiful Christ encounter to personally consider and take to prayer. Fishing was their livelihood. It’s what they knew. Their lives were dependent on it. However, we hear that sometimes they were unsuccessful at a catch. But all that changes when Jesus comes to meet them where they are and fishes for them. He casts a wide net of confidence and joy. He lures them with words of truth, encouragement and everlasting life. Who can resist the sweet fragrance of his goodness, the voice of purity and truth, the beauty of holiness? They are “hooked”. They drop everything and follow Jesus. They become true fishermen. What about you? Are you hooked on Christ? Are you hooked on Jesus?