First, we follow.

This morning’s bible study found Simon standing by a perfectly good fishing boat with a perfectly good net, ready to go out and earn an honest living to support his family. There is nothing particularly negative or notable about his profession, no scandal from which he has to flee, or sin for which he should repent. He’s just fishing. Jesus comes upon him there in his ordinary life and says, Follow me.

In this moment, before he gives his life to Christ, he hovers between something good and something better. Conversion isn't always turning from something evil to something good. Sometimes it's turning from one good thing toward the greater good God is asking of you.

Not only that, God asks us to convert, and to convert, and to convert again. When he says, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” he is asking for a transformation of mind that becomes a reorientation of the whole person. He wants metanoia. Repentance is merely the doorway into Christianity. We don’t cross the threshold, and we’re in and done for good. Repentance is, instead, the rhythm of the Christian life.

Along the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus shows us what he means. Simon and Andrew are oriented towards the sea. They are oriented toward nets, boats, fish, a family business—the entirely legitimate world they knew. Then Christ walks into it and calls them. He wants them to follow him.

They have to turn their bodies from the sea towards him. This is metanoia made visible. This is mature Christian discernment, the kind of discernment we are asked to exercise repeatedly in our lives. It’s discernment with nuance. It is asking ourselves, among all these good things, what is it God wants me to do now? Women often come to coaching because there are so many things they want to be and do. And often, they are good at all of them. Work. Ministry. Family. Service. Rest. They are gifted and skilled. Where is God calling? The question isn’t if they are doing something bad. It’s where they can do the greatest good.

Jesus says, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Notice the order. First the follow, then the formation. First we are asked to obey and to go with him. Then he will equip us with everything we need to accomplish what he’s asking us to do. They weren’t asked to follow Jesus because they were standouts in their field. Jesus calls people where they are. Sometimes he interrupts someone working. Sometimes he calls someone who is deep in prayer. It is not at all uncommon for God to call when we are suffering intensely. And sometimes, frankly, the person God calls has made a spectacular mess of his life.

I was reminded of this last weekend when I heard Fr. Anthony Federico speak. He’s a favorite, I’ll admit; we have an understanding about ESPN;-). Fr. Anthony was a young staffer creating headlines at ESPN one night when he infamously tweeted something incredibly stupid–not because he was a racist, just because he didn’t think things through. It went horrifically viral and he was fired immediately. Do click the link—the story is well worth your time.

And then, in the rubble of that spectacular disaster, he discerned a vocation. He is certainly one of the best homilists I’ve ever heard. We’re always glad when he is celebrating Mass. But God didn’t stop there.

Just a note before we transition to the paid content: These essays begin weeks before I post them. I read, research, pray, and fill pages with notes. Then I meet live with members of the Take Up community. We ask questions together, and the conversation often leads somewhere I never could have reached alone. I return to those conversations—the transcript, the chat, the notes—to distill what we discovered into these essays. I hope that the process brings the joy of the ministry to more people. You can access the full video replay of this session in the Take Up & Read membership. It is in the archives along with numerous coaching workshops, group coaching sessions, bible studies, and book chats. Come join us.