Firm Confidence

Divine Intimacy #217

“Throw your nets to the other side,” Jesus told Peter. He did as he was told, and the boat almost capsized from the number of fish that came into the nets.

So, Peter, a fisherman by trade, listened to this man he hardly knew. He must have paused, with a few unspoken thoughts, and wondered why this man would say this. Surely, in his knowledge and experience, Peter knew how and when to fish. What could this stranger offer him that would produce the needed fish?

Photo by Richard Sagredo on Unsplash

What does Jesus offer me when I face situations that feel out of my control? I can trust, but as I told a friend earlier today, it’s easy to talk the talk but much harder to walk the walk. In public, we can look like everything is fine and good, but inside, we’re barely holding it together. Letting someone see our faults and weaknesses makes us vulnerable and dependent. I’ve always been taught independence and self-reliance, and to brush off the hard stuff.

Peter didn’t brush off what Jesus said. He’d heard enough about Him from his brother, had heard Him speak, and was beginning to see things in a different light. His confidence in himself was changing; he was willing to look at situations differently; he was willing to see his own shortcomings, weaknesses, and failures and to begin again. He was willing to detach from others, from his knowledge and experience, and to listen to Jesus. He was willing to let go of his will and choose God’s will.

Jesus asks us every day to let down our nets, to release control over what we can’t control, and to trust in Him. It isn’t easy. Our human minds seek logic and answers, and God gives them to us in His own way and time. So I will continually let down my nets, casting them out for answers to hard things, even when I just want the easy way.

But I have firm confidence that He’s there with me at the altar during Mass and in Holy Communion. He will be with me always. I have to let Him in and lower my nets when and where He tells me.

God will provide with divine generosity. Are you willing to allow Him to?