There's an old hymn, technically I think a Sunday school hymn, which as been quietly excised from most contemporary hymnbooks:

Jesus calls above the tumult
of our life's wild, restless sea;
day by day his voice re-echoes,
saying, 'Christian, follow me!'

As of old, apostles heard it
by the Galilean lake,
turned from home and toil and kindred,
leaving all for his dear sake.

Jesus calls us from the worship
of the vain world's golden store,
from each rival that would claim us,
saying, 'Christian, love me more!'

In our joys and in our sorrows,
days of toil and hours of ease,
still he calls, in cares and pleasures,
'Christian, love me more than these!'

Jesus calls us! By your mercies,
Saviour, make us hear your call,
give to you our heart's obedience,
serve and love you best of all.

Cecil F Alexander (1818-1895)

I suspect this lovely hymn, with its clear echoes of John 21, is a bit too discomfiting for the average middle class western Christian who steadily acquires more and more material wealth.

When I was leaving college, and preaching with a view for the second time (out of three before a church was kind/mad enough to call me) it was on John 21.  I recall lingering on the words of Jesus to Peter, 'do you love me more than these...?'  The Greek is neatly ambiguous, and most often is interpreted/heard as 'out these eleven men are you the one who loves me the most?'  But an equally valid, and I think more likely interpretation is 'do you love me more than these things... you boat, your home, your livelihood, your wealth, your family and friends...?'  It is a question that should leave us going 'ulp!'

At this time of year new students are setting off to begin training as for pastoral ministry and for overseas mission.  Many of them have left well-paid careers, some have sold the homes (others are trapped by negative equity or a dead market), some move far away from family and friends and so on.  If they are Baptist ministerial students (or student ministers or whatever they call them these days) they go to college knowing there is no promise of a church at the end... following the call could, technically, leave them destitute.

Following my call into ordained ministry has definitely been a voyage on a wild, restless, sea, but I have no doubt at all it was the right thing to have done.  Today, as others prepare to step into that boat, to embark on their own stormy journeys, my prayer is that they will know that Jesus is there with them - even if sometimes he's so busy sleeping on a cushion they need to give him a good shake!