Then he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds...When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was many furlongs distant from the land, beaten by the waves; for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out for fear. But immediately he spoke to them, saying, "Take heart, it is I; have no fear." And Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." The disciples were terrified. Jesus calmed them: "Take heart, it is I; have no fear." Peter wanted a proof and asked to walk on the water as well. Jesus called him: "Come!" Half of his body out of the boat. Right foot on the water... felt a bit weird. Left foot on the water... bizarre! Hands off the boat and voila! First one step. Then a second one... Peter was walking on the sea! But then he looked down. The wind and the waves made him hesitate. 'What if I can't keep going?' 'What if I sink?' And as soon as he started doubting, he started sinking. Everything was going so well! He was doing the impossible. But when he began to think 'what if...', then what he feared started to happen. All his 'what ifs' became realities when he started doubting. Do you know that, according to the laws of aerodynamics, bumblebees shouldn't be able to fly? Luckily for them, nobody has told them... so they keep flying anyway. If we set our eyes on Jesus we can persevere in anything, no matter how impossible it seems. If He calls you, never doubt that you'll be able to persevere in your vocation, don't waste a second thinking 'what if.' If He has said to you "Come", ask Our Lady to remind you that there is nothing you should fear; no wind, no waves, no storm should frighten you, because Jesus is walking with you. And even if you fail to trust Him for a while, like Peter, Jesus will pull you out of the water again if you ask Him. Follow His footsteps, even if they walk on water. Just follow Him. He will never let you sink. EVER!
His disciples came to him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." He answered, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the kingdom; the weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil." Our Lord was explaining the parable of the weeds. A man had sown good seed, but whilst he was sleeping "his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat." So when the plants sprouted, the weeds appeared also. In our world today the weeds live with the wheat as well, the good with the evil, and Our Lord wants it to be so. Why? For just one single reason: for our own good. We benefit from that struggle against evil. We may not understand it; but that's because we are not God. A child was raising silkworms. When the butterflies started to break out of their cocoons and start flying, he saw that one of them was struggling for a long time to open the cocoon. It struggled for more than a day until he decided to help it. And with his fingers, he opened the cocoon and released the butterfly. The result was that the butterfly could never fly because it didn't have to fight like the others to open the cocoon. That struggle would have given strength to its wings in order to fly. But if you take away the fight... you take away the capacity to fly. All saints have encountered difficulties but it was only when they faced them and fought hard that they became the saints that we know. Saints, like heroes, can't be such unless they experience difficulties. In the fire of tribulation saints were forged. Diocletian's and Nero's persecutions produced thousands of martyrs. The wars and persecutions of the 20th century have provided more martyrs than all the previous 20 centuries put together. Holiness has always blossomed amongst difficulties and persecutions... why should it be different for you and me? But we haven't been left alone. God is with us. Mary, my Mother, Help of Christians, help me to grow in holiness in the middle of the difficulties that your Son has allowed me to undergo.
