What to Do When You Have Done Everything and Nothing is Working
“Whatever you ask in my name I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me for anything in my name, I will do it.” -John 14:13-14
Hey there,
I’ve been slacking lately. Yup. It’s embarrassing. The world is crumbling right and left, and I’ve been a bystander.
“Vote.”
“Join the Pro-Life Club.”
“Tell Joe Smoe to stop drinking so much…”
All good things, but do I really think anything I do will have an effect? My vote is a drop of water in the ocean. Nothing I say at the Pro-Life table will reach the heart of the angry, pink-haired girl convinced I hate women. Joe Smoe will keep drinking because he loves vodka and his friends.
Yesterday, a friend explained this analogy to me:
“When fishermen bring their nets in from their boats, they drag the nets onto the dock. Imagine a little pig-tailed child trying to help. She tugs at the net along with three muscular men five times her size. She’s not really making a difference, but the burly men let her help anyway. It’s cute and gives her a sense of purpose. It makes her feel part of the cause.”
That little pig-tailed girl is us, trying to help God with the load. As we struggle and fight for what we think God desires, He’s up there smiling at us with pride. I can just picture Him saying:
“Awe, there is my precious little daughter, trying so hard. If only she would just ask for help. Silly girl forgets how much stronger I am.”
Haha… real funny. But so true. Doesn’t God tell us over and over again in scripture to lean on Him? Just look at John 21:3-19. In this story, the disciples were fishing all night long and caught nothing. Jesus then calls to them from the shore, saying, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” The disciples did as Jesus said and caught so many fish, they couldn’t pull them into the boat for fear of the net breaking.
Funny. All it took was letting Jesus do the heavy lifting. We are simply the little pig-tailed girl trying to move a whole net of fish when our maker desires to lift the net for us.
In the book, The Soul of the Apostolate, it makes us sound so silly as we try to lift the heavy nets of fish all on our own:
“To tell the truth, to hear these mighty men of works talking about their exploits, one might imagine that God Almighty, to Whom it is child’s play to create worlds, and before Whom the universe is dust and nothingness, cannot get along without their cooperation.”
-Soul of the Apostolate
Take a second to reflect on that. How often do we brag about our exploits when indeed the KING OF THE UNIVERSE is guiding all things for our good? Even the little coincidences He orchestrates.
I saw this clearly during my freshman year of college. My prayer looked something like this:
“God! I pray every day; I am active in the Catholic community, and I desire so greatly to bring souls to You. I make an effort to invite other girls and spread your word, but I’m bearing no fruit! I’m so frustrated, I feel worthless.”
I’m sure God was up there laughing at me as I stressed myself out.
A month or two later, a girl I had slowly been getting to know in my speech class was walking to the parking lot with me after class, in the direction of the Catholic Church on campus. In the span of two minutes, several people I knew from the Catholic community walked by and waved enthusiastically.
“How do you know so many people around here?” my friend asked.
“Oh… well… I work at the coffee shop behind the Church, and I go to mass at St. Augustine’s,” I shyly admitted, dancing around the fact that I was Catholic.
“I go to mass occasionally there too! At 6 pm on Sundays!” my friend replied with genuine interest.
“You should come to 10:30 mass sometime!” I gained a little confidence and smiled. “There’s free brunch afterward!”
Long story short, I continued to invite her to our Newman brunches. It was awkward at first, but as I got to know her, things got easier, and a genuine friendship grew. She even began going to daily mass with me on Wednesdays!
This girl went from attending mass when she could to Wednesday masses, joining my Bible study, beginning discipleship, going to adoration, and making a good confession for the first time in 6 years. And I didn’t do anything but shyly open my mouth.
God timed our walk so we randomly walked out of class together that day.
God placed, not one, not two, but three random people from the Newman Center on the last bit of our walk toward the parking lot that happened to be across the street from the church.
God prompted her to ask that question.
And most of all, God stirred in her heart a desire for Him.
That’s the funny thing. I had put so much pressure on myself to bring souls to Him, but really all I can do is pray and be open about my faith.
Again, in Soul of the Apostolate, it quotes Bishop of Cochin-China as he speaks to the Governor of Saigon:
“Ten Carmelite nuns praying… will be of greater help to me than twenty missionaries preaching.”
Truly, the best thing you can do for those you love is to pray for them. The Lord desires to answer your prayers; you just must ask with faith and repetition.
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” -Matthew 7:7-8
“Do not worry about anything but present your needs to God in prayer and petition, with thanksgiving. Then the peace of God, which is beyond all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 4:6-7
If you are struggling to pray for others, check out my post “How to Pray Like a Warrior” for tips and tricks.
As I stress the importance of prayer and laugh about how little impact we have, this is not meant to discourage you from voting and standing at the Pro-Life table or whatnot. Those things are beneficial and teach us much. God kindly lets us be a part of the story of Salvation for a reason. It’s just a reminder of who is in ultimate control. To take a little pressure off and to explain the importance of prayer.
So, I challenge you to take a moment and reflect. Maybe pull out your prayer journal. Where do you find yourself as the little pig-tailed girl tugging at an unmoving net? How can you increase your prayer for that situation instead of pulling the weight on your own?
Praying for you always,
Xoxo
Rory😊
What are your thoughts?