CONVICTIONS
What are your convictions? What are those things that seem to make up the very essence of who you are? We all have them – those things that seem to set our hearts on fire, to stir up our souls. Those beliefs that we know are completely unique, based on our own individual experiences and histories, but that we still want to share with everyone we meet. They are like coloured threads that make up who and what we are – threads weaving into unique patterns and textures, threads that weave together to make the fabric of who we are.
So what are those threads like for you? And how do they show themselves to the world around you? I believe that who we are at our core will show itself very clearly – it’s so real that it cannot be hidden. It is like a light that shines from within. Our threads, our light, may have to do with our families, our employment, our homes, our friends, our volunteering, our pets – anything that we care about deeply will be it’s own thread, making up part of our fabric.
Our fabrics themselves are going to be unique and ever changing. Many cultures around the world share stories in the unique weaves of their fabrics, with each colour and design having a distinct meaning. Messages can be passed by unique fabrics (as with Kentee cloth in Ghana), communities are identified (such as Scottish clans), even social status can be articulated (in Biblical times only kings could wear purple).
So – your threads, your convictions - how strong are they? What would you be willing to give up in order to maintain them? In our scripture today, we hear about the conviction of Isaiah. “Here I am! Send me!” Isaiah is not simply asking for a nice vacation, a simple journey, though his eagerness does seem to suggest a positive trip. The Lord is seeking someone with the strength and conviction to give up all that they have established in their community, to go forth and spread God’s message.
Likewise, in the gospel, the disciples (after finally catching enough fish to support their families) are leaving the lives they know to venture into the unknown. They are so convinced of the power of Jesus that they leave the food to rot or be stolen by strangers, they leave their families without immediate care (a considerable taboo in those days), they even abandon their boat, the very tool needed for their trade. All because of their convictions. They must have known that with Jesus, the challenge to follow him was not a short-term folly, but a long-term commitment.
The messages this morning are of strong threads, of strong convictions. Similarly, OUR story is one of strong convictions as well. We have just entered a new venture as a new wider parish grouping. We are putting our faith in God to see us through this journey, just as the Isaiah went forth with his sin blotted out, just as the disciples walked away from the fishes. We are leaving behind the way things used to be, and moving forward with trust. The disciples were open to new possibilities, in casting out their nets that one more time. With that act of faith, they were rewarded with an overabundance. With faith comes surprises!
Our faith, in this new parish grouping, is our strongest thread. It is what will bind us together, it is what will be the basis of our work as a family. Each of us is bringing to this family a unique thread – each of us is contributing to the weave; each of our threads is necessary to make it a success. With faith, together we will weave a new net – strong, durable, welcoming and inviting. For, as Jesus indicates, as his followers, we should move forward without being afraid, ready to catch people – for His sake.
Together – let’s go fishing.
Amen.
Copyright 2010 LMP
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