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A Different Way
At dawn the disciples saw Jesus standing on the beach, but they couldn’t see who he was. He called out, “Friends, have you caught any fish?” “No,” they replied. Then he said, “Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get plenty of fish!” So they did, and they couldn’t draw in the net because there were so many fish in it. John 21:4-6
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When Jesus saw that the disciples had fished all night and caught nothing, he was interested in what they were doing. He didn’t say, “Stop fishing. Give up. Go home. Try again tomorrow!” Instead, he showed them a different way to go about their pursuit. He gave them a course correction: throw their nets on the other side of the boat. The disciples may have thought, It’s all the same water. How much difference can that make? But when they followed the new directions Jesus had given them, the nets could hardly hold the bountiful yield.
Perhaps you’ve been working and working with little fruitfulness to show for your efforts. You may even feel like giving up. But don’t do it. Instead, recommit your work to God. Ask him whether he wants you to follow a different strategy. He may have a course correction for you as he did for the disciples. Look for his guidance: he may give it in the midst of your task as he did for the disciples, in the quiet of the early morning, or as you drive down the street. But if you ask him, he will surely give it!
Prayers:
LORD, show me the best way to go about the work you’ve called me to so that I can be more fruitful for you and your kingdom. Thank you for creative ideas and fresh plans I never would think of on my own. I am so grateful that you delight in revealing them to a willing heart. And when you do, may I remember to give you the credit!
Quotes:
Prayer fits into every phase of our earthly experience, and therefore we may always pray. Your present need, difficulty, or trouble may be taken to God in prayer. There is nothing in our life in which our Heavenly Father is not interested.
Charles Cook
The One Year Bible Readings for today are: 2 Samuel 19:11–20:13; John 21:1-25; Psalm 120:1-7 and Proverbs 16:16-17.
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