On Succcess

Today's meditation from In Conversation With God is based on the gospel passage where the risen Jesus, standing on the shore, calls out to the apostles after their night of unsuccessful fishing. He tells them to cast their net one more time (only about a hundred yards from shore), and suddenly it is so full they cannot even haul it in, but must drag their catch to shore.

There is so much to learn and think about from this reading, but what hit me today were these words of Francis Fernandez:

"During the night, on their own, in the absence of Christ, they had labored in vain. They had been wasting their time. In the morning, when it was light, when Jesus was present, when He gave light with his word, when He directed the operation, the nets were completely filled as they were brought to land. The same thing happens to us every day. In the absence of Christ the day becomes night, an empty night, just another day in our life. Our efforts are not enough by themselves; we need God for them to bear fruit. By the side of Christ, when we have him with us, our days are enriched."