Musical Prelude and Service.

Mark 1:14-20
Every now and then it seems appropriate to remember and retell my call story. Or at least part of it.
Today would appear to be one of those days. This morning’s scripture reading tells Mark’s version of Jesus calling Simon and Andrew. He approaches the brothers as they stand by the shore repairing their nets after a day of fishing. He asks them to follow him, and he will make them fish for people.
They immediately drop their nets and follow Jesus upon hearing the call.
In the spring of 1988, Rev. Ken Rentz, the minister at First United Church in Dryden asked if I had considered a job in the ministry. My first reaction was to wonder why my minister was encouraging me to apply for a job at the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Fifteen years later, I walked into the kitchen as Ellie was preparing some lunch to tell her I thought I was experiencing a call to ministry. I then spent one year with a discernment committee, followed by several years of online study before heading off to seminary for ay a year of full-time study; prompted by getting laid off from my job as editor of the local newspaper.
I didn’t exactly immediately drop my nets and follow Jesus.
At least not in regard to that particular call.
Do I believe we are all called to follow in a particular manner? None of us is insignificant in God’s eyes. All of us have a part to play and path to follow. All of us in our own way get to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. But sometimes the call from Jesus can come in a very gentle voice and the message can be extremely subtle. We can miss it if we are not in a receptive place in our lives.
Ched Myers; a scholar of New Testament writing, observes that in first Century Judea, the Roman empire had taken absolute control of fishing in that region. All fishing was for export to provide food for the empire. Local fishermen were required to have licenses to fish and their pay for their work was a long way from providing a comfortable living.
In fact, fishermen were sinking lower and lower on the socio-economic scale and generally seen as amongst the least respected of people in that part of the world.
It is safe to say Simon and Andrew, along with James and John would have been quite receptive to a call to change the trajectory of their lives. Even if it meant following an itinerant preacher proclaiming the coming of God’s kingdom was at hand.
I do find myself reflecting quite often that the first of Jesus’ followers – the first people Jesus approached to follow him as students and friends and partners in his coming movement, were those that the world had essentially rejected or ignored as having no
real value to the economy or overall society. These were men who were easily ignored or silenced by the rich and powerful. And Jesus looked at them and said, come I see a new path for you. Your work and your voice should be seen and heard. People will listen to you and follow you.
Inherent in this story is the message that God sees the worth – the strength that often goes unrecognized in so many. And Jesus comes amongst us ready to tap us; tap you on the shoulder and say I have a job for you to do.
It is notable that Jesus starts this mission, this journey soon after John the Baptizer is arrested. John had been calling people to repent; to be baptized in preparation for the coming of Jesus. To repent; to change their ways or their path. To recognize that the way things had been done was not working; to seek a new way or a new path and to mark that change with baptism.
Jesus steps into the void and offers new vocations to a group of fishermen. He encourages them to put down the tools of their trade and to follow him on a new journey.
Just like John, Jesus is encouraging people to make a change. Jesus is a little bit more particular. He approaches people and says, drop what you are doing and follow me. I have a new purpose in mind for you.
That can be disconcerting for us in 21st Century Canada. Many of us are living very comfortable lives. Maybe we feel like we are living lives with purpose and meaning. Maybe we feel like we are following the call that we heard. And for some of you; many of you, that could very well be the case. But I also wonder, or perhaps suspect that there are people in our community who are asking challenging questions. Where is my life headed? What should I be doing? Does anybody care?
And to those questions, in these words of scripture, I hear God saying, yes, I find worth in your life. Yes, I have a vision for you in this world. I see you; I hear you and I value you. I love you.
It is my prayer that we all may hear God’s call. It is my prayer that we can find the courage to respond. To see the possibilities that are put before us and answer. Not all calls are glamorous and dramatic. Not everyone is called to change jobs and go to seminary. Perhaps it is a matter of getting involved in a community project. Perhaps it is answering a request to join a committee. Perhaps it is a question of shoveling your neighbour’s driveway or offering to drive someone to church on a Sunday morning.
And perhaps sometimes it is just a matter of being a bit more intentional and a bit clearer in living lives of compassion, mercy and justice. It can sometimes seem that we live in a cynical and uncaring world. It can often feel like people who proclaim to follow Jesus the Christ do not share his desire for love and compassion or insist that compassion comes with a great many conditions.
Perhaps in this day and age, we are called to follow Jesus to live lives of not just welcome, but invitation to a new way of relating to the world. One of unconditional love and compassion. One that says we are ready to walk with you and support you, no matter who you are in your journey, offering our support, or strength and our warmth. And maybe that we draw new people to the path Jesus invites us to follow.
So may we remain open to hearing Jesus calling to us; inviting us to put down the burdens and the traps that keep us in old ways of living in the world. May we find courage and strength in the knowledge that Jesus has invited us to follow a new path where he offers us strength, courage and vision to see the new possibilities that this world offers. Thanks be to God.
Amen
Rev. Warner Bloomfield

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789