Jonah might have been the only successful prophet in Israel's history in that his warnings were heeded and more so, with unprecedented haste. The people of Nineveh actually paid heed to him warning them of God's impending punishment if they persisted in their wicked ways. Immediately, they repented and renounced their evil behaviour. Thus they were saved.

The four Galilean fishermen were just as obedient when Jesus called them to follow Him. They immediately dropped everything they were doing, left families and friends behind to follow Him, not knowing what the consequences of doing so would be. There was no need for them to take time off to think about the invitation - their response was generous and swift.

Can we, Jesus' present day disciples, do the same? Are we willing to leave our comfort zones to tread into the unknown to follow Him? How quick and willing is our response to His call? Yes, there is a need for discernment but sometimes we use that as a delaying tactic! Following Jesus means to love, obey and trust Him and not to be overly bothered about what our commitment to Him might cost us.

St Paul in writing to the Corinthians writes with a sense of urgency: our time on earth is certainly short. There is simply no time to be wasted as the mission needs willing workers urgently. Let us be on our way!