Doesn’t mean that there’s not still real work to be done.
Some people are too busy to simply be with Jesus. They live more like human doings rather than human beings. Productivity outweighs intimacy. Acting like a servant outweighs acting like a friend. If that’s you, do the hard work of clearing your calendar to make space for being Jesus.
Some people are too enraptured in Jesus’ presence to get anything done. They are, as the saying goes, too heavenly minded to be any earthly good. Being a good contemplative becomes an excuse to not be a good friend to others. If that’s you, do the hard work of getting your hands dirty alongside others.
Peter jumped out of the boat so that he could get to Jesus faster. But he still had to get back into the boat in order to help his friends haul in the fish.
(I can’t help but wonder if Jesus, after enjoying a few brief intimate moments together around the fire, told Peter to leave him and go help finish the job that he had gotten his friends started on).
This, I think, is the cyclical rhythm of discipleship: Intimacy, then activity, then intimacy, then activity…
Cultivate deep intimacy with Jesus. Be eager to spend inordinate amounts of time with him. Resist the temptation of busyness.
Also get back in the boat. Get your clothes wet and your hands dirty. Pull your own weight. Resist the temptation of detached spirituality.
