'Put Out into the Deep' This Lent

As we enter into the season of Lent this month I think we should ask ourselves whether we are more influenced by our faith in Jesus or by the secular culture that surrounds us.  If we are honest, we may find that we often buy into the idea that we ultimately decide what is good or sinful.   We show this attitude by phrases like, “In my case God will understand”, or "The Church is old-fashioned and out of touch,” or "I don’t think that applies to me”, and in every one of these cases we create the Jesus and God that we want.   We are no longer challenged and made better by our faith because the content of our faith is coming from us and not from God.  
 
The deepest wound to our human nature in all this is that we are stripping away the transcendence of our lives and slowly eroding an abiding relationship with God.  A story in the Gospel gives us some insight into rediscovering what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.  While Simon Peter was fishing, Jesus said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
 
Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing.  They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them.  They came and filled both boats up so full that they were in danger of sinking.
 
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” (LK. 5: 1 - 11) Simon must have found it hard to listen to the Lord’s advice. They had fished all their lives. Who was this carpenter to tell them how to fish?   Simon could have said, “What do you know, no one has the right to tell me what to do.” But if he had, he would have missed the whole point. This suggestion of Jesus was not about the small goal of catching fish. It was about trust and acting on faith. So the disciples did put out into the deep and caught a surprising amount of fish. In light of this overwhelming miracle, Simon Peter falls on his knees and says, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
 
In that moment Simon was humbled before the overwhelming generosity of his God and saw in light of this revelation of goodness his own sinfulness, the smallness of his vision and the selfishness of his life. Have we ever experienced a moment like this when we were not enough in ourselves, that we were humbled by our sinfulness or became aware of how far we were from a real connection with our God? This moment of humility did not undo St. Peter, but freed him to accept the bigger call from Jesus that he would be a Fisher of Men.
 
During this Lent we should try to deepen our awareness of the transcendence of God in our lives.  Become aware of that area of your life that you have held back from the Lord. In those places you have decided the commandments or the teachings of the Church do not apply to you, bring those decisions to prayer. Consider in your heart why you cannot or are afraid to follow where the Lord is leading. Do you see that this decision may be weighing heavier on your heart than you let yourself know, or may be keeping you from a deeper relationship with God in prayer?  Consider yourself being asked by Jesus to “put out into deep water,” that is to let him change your heart.
 
This is a worthy meditation for the season of Lent. This experience may humble us, but it will also free us. We will be able to let go of the chains of sin and be freed to find room in our hearts for the transcendent God who gives us a loving truth to accept, not to create.