Obeying faith!
Verse for Today: Monday, December 16, 2013
John 21:6 – Jesus said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.” So they cast and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish.
There are times when our efforts bring forth no results and we feel like we are a failure. Sometimes we face a series of failures in our lives which come in procession. This may be true in our secular occupation or in Christian ministries. These failures often make us deeply discouraged. But we must understand that the Lord achieves His purpose for us even through our failures and teaches us precious lessons in faith which we may not learn otherwise. Some failures come because we make decisions outside the will of God. Failures are also seen when we depend on our experience and expertise rather than on God. It is also likely that the Lord wants to use our failed efforts as an opportunity to demonstrate His supernatural power to interfere in our lives. No matter what the reasons behind our failures and defeats are, it is true that the Lord will use it for His glory. But it has to be the Lord’s way and not our way. He turns things around when we give Him total and unconditional obedience to His instructions. When He says where we ought to launch out, that is the way we should go even when it is the same spot we toiled all night in vain. Even when there was no catch all night, if we cast the net at His command, it becomes His responsibility to give us the right catch. He will surely accomplish His purpose in us through our obedience. Our absolute obedience to Him is the practical expression of our commitment and allegiance to Him which will be used by Him to bring glory to His name. Thus we become His and our catch becomes His. It is now His fish, not ours. Where our skills and aptitudes fail miserably, the Lord becomes victorious through us.
Dear friend, when was the last time you were ready to quit because you felt that you were a failure? It is at such times that the enemy of our souls mocks us and drops doubts in our hearts about our faith. But our Lord works in very different ways. He often makes us realize our inadequacy before filling us with His power to accomplish what He has planned in our lives. In our efforts, we would not have caught 153 large fish in one night, but it has pleased Him to give us such results in our ministries because of His faithfulness. Such results come when we commit our ways to Him and obey His instructions. Today we must rise up from the ashes of our failures, listen to the instructions of the Lord and obey unconditionally. Let us today examine and confess our backsliding and get back to full obedience to the Lord and walk by faith. Let us commit the results of our obedience for His glory. Let us commit our ways to Him and give Him our total allegiance. Let us cast our nets exactly at the direction at which He wants and expect great things from Him. When the catch is very large, He will guard our nets so that it won’t be torn. He will give us the capacity and grace to pull it to the shore where we will continue in commune with Him and forget our catch. When the Lord demonstrates His glory in and through our efforts, we do not any longer dwell on the catch, but on the Lord who is the cause of it all.
John 11:40 – Then Jesus said: “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
Thought for Today
Our obedience to God carries with it His power to accomplish His will in our lives.
Prayer for Today
Dear Lord Jesus: Help my unbelieving heart to experience Your power in restoring my failures to victory. Amen!
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