jesus, lord of your best
Jesus "got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon." —Luke 5:3
In Luke's Gospel, Jesus first encounters Simon when He enters his house and instantly heals Simon's mother-in-law (Lk 4:38-39). Simon was apparently impressed enough to let Jesus use his boat as a pulpit (Lk 5:3). Some people would not allow Jesus in their workplace, but Simon was impressed enough and humble enough to accept Jesus' offer to help him in his business (Lk 5:4-5).
Jesus had touched Simon by His ministry in Simon's home and workplace. However, what converted Simon was when Jesus showed His absolute and miraculous lordship over Simon's work. Simon was a professional fisherman and Jesus, a Carpenter (Mk 6:3), was not. When Jesus convinced Simon by the miraculous catch of fish (Lk 5:6) that He was Lord of fishermen, Simon accepted Jesus as his Lord, confessed his sinfulness, and fell to his knees before Jesus (Lk 5:8). He became a completely new man in Jesus, to the point that, after this, Jesus will refer to Simon as Peter, the Rock.
What is your area of expertise? What do you spend most of your day doing? That's the prime area of your life to invite Jesus to operate freely. When you give Jesus free rein in that area, He will, out of love for you, let you realize "the immeasurable scope of His power" (Eph 1:19). That's the place where you'll come to know just how great a Lord He is. Let Jesus be Lord of your best.
Prayer: Father, may I "attain full knowledge of [Your] will through perfect wisdom and spiritual insight" (Col 1:9).
Promise: "Through [Jesus] we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins." —Col 1:14
Praise: Pope St. Gregory proclaimed the lordship of Jesus over his personal property by selling his enormous properties and using the proceeds for the poor and monasteries.
Reference: (This teaching was submitted by a member of our editorial team.)
Rescript: †Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, February 11, 2009
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