Baby Powder

Several years ago a Russian comedian came to the United States. He said that when he first arrived in North America he wasn't prepared for the incredible variety of instant products available in American grocery stores. He says, "On my first shopping trip, I saw powdered milk—you just add water, and you get milk. Then I saw powdered orange juice—you just add water and you get orange juice. And then I saw baby powder, and I thought to myself, what a country!"

Good News and Bad News

Well today I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that when you add water to babies in baptism you don't automatically get a full grown Christian. It takes more than the sacrament of baptism to make us authentic followers of Jesus Christ. We still have to listen to the Lord all through our lives. Jesus is still calling us to serve one another. He never seems to get tired of that task. He never seems to want to let us off the hook so that we can go about our lives the way we want to, without having to worry about taking care of other people. But the good news is that he doesn't expect us to do all of this work by ourselves. He tells us not to be afraid. He will be with us as we try our best to bring some genuine caring into this world of ours.

And just in case you think that you're too busy at work to pay much attention to this call from Jesus, take note of exactly where he decided to call Peter. Peter was at work when Jesus decided that it was time to make him an offer that he couldn't refuse. Peter and his fellow fishermen were cleaning their nets up when Jesus came along and told Peter it was time to go fishing again. But this time he strongly advised Peter that it would be better if he went out to where the water was deeper.

Chances Not To Be Missed

How many times at work do we have opportunities thrown our way? Opportunities to listen more closely to someone whom we work with, opportunities to gently but firmly stand up for what is honest and decent, even opportunities to practice forgiveness and compassion. So many of us spend so much of our time at work. Isn't this a natural place to carry out our roles as followers of Jesus?

Some of this might come with a price tag attached. We all know that it is much easier to go along with the crowd. Who wants to be the one who is labeled as different or strange? Most of us would rather just blend in with others at work and not be thought of as a little weird, or even as a trouble maker. Being a Christian in the workplace is sometimes a very difficult thing to do. In extreme cases, it might even cost us our job. And so it's not something we can take lightly. And yet, it's not something that we can avoid. Wherever we are, whatever we do, we do it as followers of Christ. And so whether we are at home, or on holidays, or in the workplace, we are still followers of Christ.

Leaving Everything

In our Gospel today we hear these words: “When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.” They paid a high price to become followers of Jesus. We shouldn't be too surprised when we are also asked to pay the necessary cost of being a disciple of Christ. We are asked to leave behind anything that would stand in the way of carrying out God's will in our lives. At times that might mean leaving behind material possessions. We all know how easy it is to get so attached to the things we own, or want to own, that they take center stage in our lives. We find ourselves giving most of our time and attention to what we own or are trying to own, rather than to the deeper needs of our family, our friends, and our world.

Listen to this memory from a man who saw an ad in a newspaper: "I remember a few years ago seeing an ad in the paper for a drive-in Passion Play. It was like a drive-in movie. You could watch the story of Jesus, the Passion Play, without ever getting out of your car. And I'll never forget the ad. It said this: ‘Come and experience the life of Christ all from the comfort of your own car.’

"And I pondered that, and I was overwhelmed with the truth that we will not experience the life of Christ or the life that Christ desires for us from within our areas of comfort. We will not be the church that God desires from within our areas of comfort" (Ken Kersten).

Comfort and Risk

There are many ways that we get caught up in our own comfort. In fact, comfort can become our greatest danger. It can prevent us from seeing possibilities for reaching out to others. It can lock us into a small self-centered life. This is not the kind of discipleship that Jesus dreams of for us.

At times we have to take risks. We have to do this, both as a church and as individuals within the church. If throughout her history, the Church did not take many risks, we would probably not be here today. The gospel has been spread to the four corners of the world because men and women left everything to bring the Good News to people everywhere.

When we become aware of opportunities in our lives where we sense we can make a difference, we need to seriously consider those opportunities. If we find ourselves constantly putting those ideas out of our mind, then perhaps we have decided in favor of comfort. Fear often holds us back from bringing more love into our world. May we remember that Jesus does not send us out alone to do his work. He will be with us—always and everywhere.