Kitchens are often a place where magic happens; unless its my kitchen, then maybe not so much. But, I can remember times when I was growing up where my parents made the ordinary seem miraculous. My mother in law also seems to have a policy where people need to be eating at all times. She also believes that family dinners need to have enough food to feed most of the 7th fleet. Part of that on her part is a desire to offer hospitality to her family. She wants to make sure that everyone has what they enjoy, and that they have enough of it. There have been many times over the years when I have looked at the dinner table and thought, “Where did it all come from?” If you ever walked away from either my parents table or my in-laws table hungry, it was your own fault. There was always an abundance; even now, my mother in law’s dinner table continues to be a place of hospitality and plenty.Having a dinner table such as my mother in law’s makes room for those who eat there, to be able to do other things. When we gather around a table of plenty, we feel good, we feel secure. Extending hospitality such as my mom’s is such an amazing and loving gift. It says that I am welcomed, and that I am worth spending time on. It also says that my comfort and wellbeing is important. My experience at her table has also shown me that I can trust her to care for me and make me feel welcomed.Being a fisherman, such as Peter and some of the disciples were, was a matter of having enough or not having enough. Peter was dependent upon the seas to be able to feed his family. If there was no catch, he made no money. If there were too many days of no catch, he could lose everything. It’s a difficult way to live, and yet many in our world live like this.After a long night of fishing with no luck, Jesus tells Peter and the others to put out their nets for a catch. I imagine it was a ridiculous request. It was daytime, Jesus had been teaching from the boat, there were people everywhere. I would think that any fish that were around would have been scared off by all the noise and movement. After a little bit of resistance, Peter trusts Jesus and puts the nets down. He obviously wasn’t expecting what would happen. They caught so many fish, the boats started to sink. Peter immediately panics and doesn’t feel worthy of this gift from Jesus. And yet Jesus says, do not be afraid…What I love about this story is when I imagine it in my head, I see Jesus smile and maybe even laugh at Peter’s surprise. And then I see Jesus, smiling, face full of love, look at Peter and say, do not be afraid. There is so much here; there’s this sense of hospitality, that Peter and the rest are welcomed to a time of abundance; their tables and the tables of many are able to be set; there’s a sense of security because they will be able to eat, they will be able to feed their families and they will be able to have some financial security. It is certainly a gift to be able to feel secure in a world that often did not feel secure. But now that Peter and the rest have this gift of abundance, the plot thickens… from now on, you will be catching people. Guess what Peter? Your life has been given over to the spread of the kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. This “table”, this place of amazing abundance is asking you to go forth and let Jesus take root in you so that you might bring his hospitality and his abundance to others.Guess what, beloved? This amazing catch of fish is ours as well; we too are being loved and cared for beyond our wildest imagination. The love that Jesus has for each of us is more than we can ask for, more than we can even handle. It provides us with a type of “soul security”; a security that allows us to know that we are cared for in this life and in the next; a security that allows us to know that God’s kingdom has come to earth in the life of Jesus.How do we share this abundance? First, like Peter, we might have to say, Ok Lord, if you say so, I will do what you ask…. Even if we don’t believe it’s possible. Our little church shaped boat can sometimes look pretty empty; we talk about money, we talk about numbers, we get tangled up in concerns that really shouldn’t concern us. And let me say, that the National church often pushes us in those directions by having us fill out reports and count dollars and people. I hate numbers. They aren’t a good indication of who we are.You know what IS a good indication? It’s all those things that we cannot count, those things that have our little boat filled to overflowing; the meals we make for each other, the visits, the times we get together to study or just have some coffee together; it’s the dedicated people who have been cutting the grass and weeding the flowerbeds and changing the light bulbs and getting the altar ready for worship; it’s musicians learning new songs; it’s vestry members talking about hard things; it’s the hugs we give the kids when they’re here… so many things we cannot possibly count that fill our little boat to overflowing…And now beloved as we look to our next year together, it’s time for us to catch people; not so that will necessarily show up here, although that’s nice; but so that they will experience the love, hospitality and security that Jesus has to offer to them. He offers that through us, through our ministry, through how we spread his love to others. The love of God never diminishes, only multiplies. And so, we give thanks that we are ok, that somehow much is made from little. And we trust that there will be more than enough for us because God’s love cannot be measured. And, we don’t run away from the blessing, but rather, embrace it and give it away. There are so many people who need what we have to offer – and there are so many different ways that we can share what we have. May we be confident in our call from Jesus, who has called us to life in his abundant love; may we always welcome others to experience his kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.
