Jesus’ message was clear. “Come with me and carry on my ministry.” Jesus was so convincing that they made a leap of faith, dropped everything, including the nets that were full to overflowing, and went with him. Amazing!
Let’s think about those nets. They were an essential part of those people’s livelihood, weren’t they? I’m going to tell you a little bit about some other nets. But you’ll have to finish the story by yourselves because of our time restrictions today.
Helen and I went to the Indiana Women’s Prison Thursday evening and learned from some of the inmates about a project they have to save lives one net at a time. Remember some of these women have taken someone’s life. They chose this project of making nets to protect infants, young children and pregnant mothers from bites from mosquitoes that carry malaria.
The inmates are dedicated to preserving life and giving hope. They send the nets mainly to sub-Saharan Africa where 90% of the 1.2 million deaths from malaria each year occur. These nets mean the difference between life and death.
We invite you to learn more about this project. Take home a paper about it. We will be talking more about the “One Net – One Life Mosquito Net Project” in the near future.
Where is God calling us, as a community, to follow Christ? Let’s pray about that as we begin the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
Maria Thornton McClain, RCWP