In 1521 when Cortez landed on the Gulf Coast and set out with 500 men to conquer Mexico, he ordered his soldiers to burn all their boats so they'd know there was no going back. Either they'd defeat Montezuma and his pagan gods, or they'd die in the attempt. It was all or nothing: retreat was not an option.
In today's Gospel Jesus says the same is true also for all who follow him: we have to burn our boats. Since his is the path of sacrificial love, any response other than love is not an option — even in the face of hostility. It might have felt good to destroy those hateful Samaritans as James and John suggested in the verses that immediately precede the passage you just heard, but Jesus reminded them that they've already burned that boat. And not only is love the only acceptable response, following Jesus is an all or nothing proposition, as you Brothers and Sisters of Charity know all too well. One guy in our Gospel wants to postpone responding to God's call, once his father is dead and gone but Jesus says it's now or never: Let the dead bury their dead — you go proclaim the kingdom of God.
Another wants to take time to say all his farewells first, but Jesus says burn your boats and don't look back: No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.
“In today’s Gospel Jesus says it’s all or nothing and now or never. Do you still have any inappropriate emotional baggage you need to get rid of?”