Last week I was reflecting on Samuel’s call. This week we read the story of Jesus calling the first disciples Mark 1:14-20. Call is an important part of our relationship with God. God calls and we respond. God doesn’t wait until we are ready. God doesn’t wait until we have our lives in order and are prepared. God doesn’t wait until we have learned or trained enough. God calls and we are invited to respond. God doesn’t just call once and then give up on us. We saw this last week with Samuel. It took multiple calls from God, before Samuel heard and responded.
Today, we heard Jesus calling. He didn’t just call one person. He called many people. Jesus’ call to the disciples feels pretty random. He just happened to be passing by, saw Simon and Andrew. He keeps walking and sees James and John. All four responded to his call. As his ministry continues, Jesus continues to call various people that he encounters. According to the stories, they dropped everything and followed Jesus.
The story doesn’t tell us how difficult it was for them to give up everything they had known. The story doesn’t tell us about the difficult days when they didn’t get what Jesus was saying. It doesn’t tell us about the days they felt like it was all going wrong. God calls us. I feel a strong call to Diaconal ministry within the United Church of Canada and I continue to feel a strong call to be in ministry with this community of faith. The last few months have been challenging for me and suspect challenging for many of you. There are many things that contribute to these challenges. I know that God doesn’t just call us and everything will be smooth sailing. I wish it were that simple.
What’s becoming more of a lived reality for me is that God calls us even when life is really hard. Psalm 62:5-8 reminds me that on challenging days, it God who shows up for me. It is God who is my rock and my fortress even when I feel like my faith, my hope, my call have been shaken.
The disciples didn’t know anything about Jesus or what they were getting into when he called them. I suspect there were really difficult days and that on those days they questioned why Jesus had called them. What good were they? They didn’t have the ability to heal like Jesus. They couldn’t speak with his authority. They couldn’t see the potential in people that Jesus could see. They weren’t prepared to take on the Jewish authorities or the Roman Empire. I suspect there were days when they just wanted to go home and go back to their old lives and leave all the discipleship behind.
God calls us over and over again. We might try turning off the call or ignoring it, but God keeps calling until we respond. I have a specific call to Diaconal ministry, but I believe that God calls each person into their own ministries within their family, community and world. Call is not something reserved for a privileged few. Jesus called ordinary people. He brought them along with him as he offered his ministry. He taught them how to heal, how to see, how to respond to people in need. He called them even when they wanted to give up.
Jesus reminded them in those challenging moments to pray and to place their trust in God. God doesn’t call us and then let us go off on our own. God calls us and then walks with us through everything that being faithful offers us. God walks with us when life is comfortable and easy. God walks with us when everything feels topsy-turvy and uncertain. I invite you to consider your call. How is God calling you? How has God supported you in your call when it has been challenging? How do you experience God as your rock and your fortress?
Twirling Jen 