Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] It is so easy to feel small and insignificant. It's easy when you consider the vastness of the world that we find ourselves in. Check this out. I'm blessed to be fishing with my son who's home from Steubenville right now, and my son in law.
[00:00:11] And that is Mount Rainier coming to take a peek at us.
[00:00:15] Dude, 25, 26 glaciers live on that mountain.
[00:00:23] Boom. That's mind blowing.
[00:00:26] You know, it's also pretty dang easy to feel insignificant when you think of how many people are on this Earth.
[00:00:31] Almost 8 billion people. Like, how could I possibly matter in the eyes of God? Okay, a couple thoughts in response. Number one, see that mountain? I want to have you take another look at that.
[00:00:43] For all its vastness, for all its majesty, that mountain cannot know someone, cannot love. And someday that will erode and it will look like Iowa.
[00:00:57] You will still be around.
[00:00:59] God didn't make that mountain to experience his love, but to convey a little drop of his love for you and the glory waiting for you in heaven.
[00:01:08] And of all the people on earth. Guys, God is infinite, which means he can give each person his infinite attentiveness.
[00:01:17] Both his eyes are on you at all times. You wake up in the morning, this might be kind of awkward. He's been watching all night. He's here. He's looking at you. He has infinite attentiveness to you when you pray. He didn't start to notice you. You started to notice the God who's always noticing, who's always looking, who's always watching and waiting for you because he loves you and he doesn't have an indirect connection to you guys.
[00:01:41] God has no grandchildren. As much as I love my grandkids, as close as I feel to them. Sorry, I got to show you this again. It gets clearer and prettier by the second.
[00:01:49] Oh, man.
[00:01:51] Over 14,000ft coming up from near sea level.
[00:01:55] As much as I love my grandkids, right? But there's. There's also. There's one step removed. There's no one step removed with Almighty God. He only has children directly generated from his heart. That's you, his child.
[00:02:07] But I'll tell you what, guys, that feeling of insignificance, I think Christians have dealt with that throughout history from the apostles, and I think they all genuinely dealt with that. Now in Jesus time, it was common for rabbis to make the rounds around different towns and to teach children. And the particularly gifted ones would rise up and he would call them. The rabbi would invite those children with a formulaic phrase, Come, follow me. Lech ach horai. I remember hearing Jeff Cavins teach me about this on the Sea of Galilee.
[00:02:40] He leads pilgrimages there. And since him taking me there, I started to as well. It's an addictive, beautiful experience. Come with me someday. But Lech ach horai. That was the formula. When a child heard that, what they heard was this. You stand out. You're special. And I'm going to call you and attach you to myself. And a rabbi. The way he taught, he didn't merely teach you facts from a book.
[00:03:03] A student was said. A disciple was said to mirror the rabbi so carefully that they would learn how they walked, how they talked, how they ate, to where that disciple would be mistaken for the rabbi. And it wasn't just about learning facts the rabbi knew, but seeing the world through the rabbi's eyes.
[00:03:23] Guys, I think the apostles, I think they wanted to be called.
[00:03:28] I think they had dreamt of that happening for them, but that boat had sailed.
[00:03:34] They got old enough. It just didn't happen for them. So they went on to other careers. They were tax collectors or they were fishermen.
[00:03:41] Guys, that's the backstory. When Jesus said, come, follow me on the seashore of Galilee, I think they were hearing something that they had always wanted to hear.
[00:03:51] And I think that's why they instantly dropped everything and followed Him.
[00:03:56] They knew amidst this whole world filled with people, I'm standing out to Him. I'm special. I am called.
[00:04:04] Guys, if you bear the name Christian, don't ever listen to the evil one's lies.
[00:04:10] You are directly called by God. You have the same level of intimacy and closeness with him that John the Beloved had in some mystical way that Our lady had.
[00:04:22] He who dwelt in her belly dwells inside of you, even physically. Every time you receive Holy Communion, the God who made all of this is very much thinking of you. And every time you go to Mass, you're reminded. You're reminded. And you still wonder, do I matter to God? And you hear his answer. Body of Christ. Is he thinking of me? Body of Christ. Not just for the whole world. He didn't just die for the whole world, but for you who are watching me right now.
[00:04:48] What's my net worth? Body of Christ.
[00:04:51] It's always answered for us, guys. We have to actually start letting it sink in and hear the message. Guys. He doesn't indirectly call you or just through other people, though that does happen, or just through the beauty of creation. But no, no, right now, directly, his grace is pouring on you. He's calling you. He's inviting you to be saint. Insert your name here.
[00:05:10] Amen. Just let the beauty of that mountain speak to us.
[00:05:17] That's almighty God saying, I love you.
[00:05:23] Hallelujah.
[00:05:25] You know, side note, too, I think the Lord also chose fishermen because fishermen have a literally stupid amount of hope.
[00:05:33] They just keep going. They're always hoping, like, dude, there's gotta be something's gonna bite. One little nibble, keep it going for hours, right, Joey?
[00:05:40] Just. Just keeps it going forever. And I think that's required to follow Jesus takes a lot of patience with yourself, but also a lot of patience with the world. He's trying to bring people to him. It's always that one little hit on the line.
[00:05:54] Come, Holy Spirit. God bless you guys.
[00:06:21] The fishermen are getting tired.
