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I recently read this story and noticed something new. Simon (Peter) had not been negligent in his efforts when he went fishing. He put in every effort, including staying out all night, to bring home a catch. He was skilled, as fishing was his livelihood. He brought admirable qualities to his trade - knowledge, skill, perseverance, and strength - yet, he caught nothing.
Sometimes, it feels like we toil constantly—attending church, helping others, caring for family—the list goes on! But by the end of the day, we often feel exhausted with little to show for it. Things changed when Jesus entered the boat. Simon not only sat near Christ but listened to His teaching. All the work stopped. He just sat and absorbed Christ's words. Then came the moment when Jesus said, ‘Now go out where it is deeper…’. Simon is hesitant: ‘“Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” Luke 5:5 NLT In essence, Simon is saying, ‘Lord, I’ve already tried. I gave my all; it didn’t work then, and it won’t work now.’ But he obeys nonetheless. And then, it happens: ‘And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear!’ Luke 5:6 NLT Simon set aside all his knowledge, skill, and willingness to work all night and obeyed Jesus’ words. Simple obedience is all that was needed, and his nets were bursting. We often make things harder for ourselves. We try repeatedly, with the best intentions, which usually comes from a desire to do what’s right. Yet, there is a better way! Let’s take time this week to listen for that gentle voice that whispers within us, ‘Now go out where it is deeper…’. Here, our souls are renewed, and our nets are filled with God's life. We don’t need to rely solely on our strength, as that only results in empty nets. Instead, when we heed his whisper and step out into the deep with Him, we find all we need. Here, we are nourished and empowered to nourish and strengthen others.
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How lovely that the Son of Man, and the Son of God, came from the glory to dwell among us. He left the light and freedom of heaven to live among us and become one of us. He walked the dusty roads, He breathed the same air, He ate the same food, He washed with the same water and felt the same heat of the sun.
There were times when He longed to be alone and quiet. ‘Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.’ Luke 5:16 NLT His parents didn’t understand His great commission. ‘“Why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they didn’t understand what he meant.’ Luke 2:49,50 NLT He had friends who loved Him. ‘Then Peter said to him, “We’ve given up everything to follow you.”’ Matthew 19:27 NLT And foes who hated Him. ‘At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage and began to discuss what to do with him.’ Luke 6:11 NLT There were times when He was tired. ‘Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well.’ John 4:6 NLT There were times that He was absolutely exhausted. ‘But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion.’ Mark 4:37,38 NLT There were times when He was frustrated. ‘Jesus said to them, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you?”’ Mark 9:19 NLT And there were times when He sought human company. “Stay here and keep watch with me.” Mark 14:34 NLT And there were times when he was in anguish. ‘He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed.’ Mark 14:33 NLT The Son of God gave up His omniscience and took on our human nature with all its limitations, failings and weaknesses. He became flesh. He dwelt among us. He lived and worked among human beings. There were times when He wearied of us, times of frustration, and times of deep sorrow, but whilst we were still sinners, He loved us. ‘The Word became flesh and dwelt among us’; so that one day we might become spiritual and dwell with the Trinity. Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.’ Exodus 33:9-11
Our recent young adults’ Fire Conference was a delight to attend. Over 50 young people arrived with intent and purpose to find God more deeply. There was a sense throughout the weekend of hunger, anticipation and earnest desire in young adults to hear from God, embrace the word of God and to experience the joy of living in our own 21st Century ‘Tent of Meeting’. We were not disappointed. On reading the verse above, although not explicitly stated in scripture, you are left with the impression that Joshua is unable to leave that place due to the deep satisfaction and joy in experiencing the glory of God as it was descended in that place. What a wonder that we too, over last weekend, experienced His same glory and many thrilled in finding Him in a deeper way. One young person testified with tears of gratitude on the Sunday morning: he described being filled with overwhelming joy as he was baptised in the Holy Spirit the evening before. He awoke with that same joy remaining in his heart the following morning. We have left our ‘tent of meeting’ with renewed vision, hope and drive for the future – young adults whose hearts are after God. We pray that God will bless us all with times entering His tent of meeting and beholding His glory in the times ahead. I often think of prayers as being like people — they can be big or small, young or old. Jesus gave His disciples (and us) the Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:1-4). It’s a significant prayer — old but God-given. It’s beautiful and covers all aspects of prayer, including worship, praise, intercession, repentance, and much more. The Lord’s Prayer is a lovely starting point for learning to pray as we begin our Christian journey. It’s a prayer we can all share, perhaps in a church meeting or in our Bible study groups, speaking it aloud together. I love singing it in church.
When I was young, I used to recite the same prayer every night for years: “This night as I lie down to sleep, I pray thee God my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, Take me to heaven for Jesus’s sake. God bless mum and dad,” etc. Perhaps you prayed that prayer too? It was an old prayer. As we grow in God, our prayers change. We learn to pray in our own words. In quiet moments or as we go through our day, we can bring Him those little prayers of thanks, asking for help for others or ourselves. We might ask for forgiveness if we feel we have let Christ down in some way. Sometimes we speak our prayers aloud, other times they stay within our hearts. Sometimes, those prayers are larger — when our church family comes together to pray for a situation. We feel the strength and power of those “big” coming-together prayers. “Casting all our cares upon Him, for He cares for you,” 1 Peter 5:7. Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples, wrote that verse. He had experienced that care from Jesus in a very personal way. Christ Himself had prayed for him: “I have prayed for you that your faith fail not,” Luke 22:32. We can also know that care and help are available. Christ prays for us now. He tells us so in His word: “He always lives to make intercession for us,” Hebrews 7:25. Our Saviour and friend is praying for us. It’s a wonderful thought and one we should hold on to when trials and troubles come our way. Personally, I experienced a trial last week when my grandson was ill. All I could do was send up a little arrow prayer for help! “In that day when I called you answered me and you strengthened me with strength,” Psalm 138:3. And He came! He encouraged me. I felt the strength of the whole church. My little prayer became a big prayer: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths,” Proverbs 3:5-6. So, keep praying and be encouraged that God hears all our prayers. Let our prayers to Him be as incense (Revelation 8:3). What an invitation! Jesus Himself is beckoning each one of us to draw aside and draw near to the Son of the Living God.
Up to this point in Matthew’s Gospel, we read that Jesus has sent out His twelve disciples, commissioning and empowering them to do many miracles in His name. He has been travelling and teaching across the country, including preaching the Sermon on the Mount. He has faced questioning from the Pharisees, looking to trap Him in His own words; and multitudes have been healed, delivered and restored. You can get the picture of all the comings and goings, with Jesus’ earthly ministry now in full operation, and yet amongst all of this busyness, He is putting out this intimate call to all those following to come to Him and, in doing so, find the promise of His rest. Each one of us can no doubt relate to this at one point or another: when it feels like there is always something to be done, someone to speak to, work and natural responsibilities that necessarily need to be attended to. When life becomes like this, we have a wonderful opportunity, just like Jesus’ followers in this story, to quieten ourselves, to listen for His still small voice, whispering our names, and calling for us to come aside and be at one with Him. When we answer His calling out to us, we will find that with just one moment in His presence, He will flood our hearts again with His peace and light. He will refresh us, giving us the energy and resources for the next stage in our journey for He knows exactly what we have need of before we even ask (Matthew 6:8). All of the tension and anxiety simply melts away in His presence. How needed this is in the world we live today! So how can we answer Him? By switching off from the external distractions, turning to Him in the quietness of our own hearts, and breathing in of His glorious presence. There you’ll find, “He will quiet you with His love” (Zephaniah 3:17). Don’t miss His calling to you today. We had a super Midlands conference last weekend. I’m still rejoicing in what God did for us and the depth of anointing we felt . It was an excellent start; our first English conference since Covid.
One of the things Graham and I find hard to do at such a time is to leave our home church, especially our Sunday morningservice. We have had so many new folks coming around us, it’s hard to leave the spiritual bairns. It makes me smile because in earlier years (when our church was much smaller) it was hard to leave the family, the natural bairns, behind. It’s still just as hard in a different way. We have trusty workers at home. We do not need to worry, it’s just a wrench leaving. But we also had a wonderful weekend at the conference, and the anointing on the Sunday morning was outstanding. We were not disappointed at all. In fact, I’m still thrilling with what God did that morning. ‘I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord.’ Psalm 84:2 NLT It’s not the place we yearn, it’s the presence of God we yearn after. We long to enter the inner courts, before the Throne of the King of Kings. Like the words of the song by Dave Browning “Take me past the outer courts, Into the holy place, Past the brazen altar. Lord I want to see Your face. Pass me by the crowds of people And the priests who sing Your praise. I hunger and thirst for Your righteousness, But it's only found in one place. Take me in to the Holy of Holies. Take me in by the blood of the lamb. Take me in to the Holy of Holies. Take the coal, touch my lips, here I am.” We aim to move beyond the outer courts, past the crowds, straight into the place where the glory resides. That is our pursuit. That’s the place we long to experience. Not just the outer courts, which are often wonderful for newcomers, but for those who have walked the Christian path for years, we yearn for the Holy of Holies. We hunger for His presence. The truth is, there is a place for everyone in the house of God. There is room for the newcomer to enter God’s presence, and there is space for the mature Christian who longs for the inner courts of His presence. He meets each individual where they are. He takes the smallest desire and fans the flame until it becomes an ardent longing. We can confidently invite others into the church knowing that He will meet each one where they are. A certain Samaritan lady came to draw water from Jacob’s well; and Jesus, sitting by the well because He was weary, asked her for a drink of water. The Jews normally didn’t speak to the Samaritans, and the lady expressed surprise at being spoken to by a Jew.
‘Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”’ John 4:10 NLT Let’s pause and consider these words before we begin our daily business: “If you only knew the gift God has for you”. What gift has God got for you today? The gift of a new day and everything it brings: the security of His presence, peace that steadies you in every situation, strength to face all the challenges that come your way. These are just some of the blessings that can accompany a Christian on their journey. “and who you are speaking to,” Take the opportunity to reflect as you consider whom you address in prayer each morning. As our Lord Jesus taught us to pray: “Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.” Matthew 6:9 NLT Let’s not rush these moments in prayer because we have slept in or forgotten to set the alarm clock, or not even considered giving Him the few minutes of quiet in the morning. We should give Him the best of our day. “you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” Let us ask for a drink of living water each morning. Living water is full of spirituality, eternal light and life; it contains joy, peace, and divine contentment. What a nice way to consider praying - coming for a drink of living water. Come to the One who can give you a drink of the water of life, even when He is weary. He can give you to drink from the: ‘river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.’ Revelation 22:1 NLT Wow! Imagine drinking straight from that river. Our energies would quickly be restored. These are the leading verses in the Sermon on the Mount. Our children’s Bibles present beautiful illustrations of grassy slopes, people standing around with long robes leaning on shepherds’ staffs, sitting in small groups, mothers with young children, and all mesmerised by this Man who spoke with such authority. (Matthew 7:7:28,29).
What struck me was that Jesus sat down to teach. Jewish teachers, especially rabbis, would sit to teach as a traditional sign of authority, with students gathering around them to learn. However, in our culture, you would stand when speaking to a crowd. A teacher teaching a class of children would stand to see all her pupils and be seen by them. To project your voice, you would usually stand. Yet Jesus, addressing large crowds, sat down to teach. There is something beautiful about the minute detail of this. It suggests He was relaxed and content to be about His Father’s business. He wasn’t feeling threatened by the people. He wasn’t in a hurry or anxious to wind up quickly and to get away. He was doing what He was called to do and was perfectly content with the outworking of the plan of God. He wasn’t unnerved by having to speak before such a large crowd. He wasn’t distracted by the people gathered or overexcited by the numbers He drew. He was in the will of God and was perfectly comfortable bringing this great discourse on the blessings of God to the people. We read in another portion of the Bible: ‘Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.”’ John 4:34 NLT For Christ to be sitting and teaching was nourishment for His soul. When we fulfil our calling, we need to be perfectly comfortable in what we do. If we are in the centre of His will, we shall be at ease like Christ. We should be able to sit down and relax as we teach and preach. That doesn’t mean only those who enjoy hearing their voice will become preachers or teachers. We are often called to do things outside our comfort zones, but in answering and fulfilling God's call, we need to find a place where we are completely relaxed and content. Only then will we find our souls nourished. You can guarantee that you will be fed as you fulfil your call. If you are not, if instead you are drained, then you are operating in your strength rather than under the unction of the Holy Ghost. Find your way whereby you can ‘sit down’ to fulfil the will of God. Let your soul be nourished in His presence, for we have a long journey before us, and we must pace ourselves. Each new day must bring new manna for our nourishment and growth. Then we will be happy and strengthened: content to fulfil the will of God. We are grateful to God for His goodness to us. We prayed hard this weekend, and He answered. Where would we be without Him? God has never left us. The church was full of His presence, the anointing flowed freely, and the worship rose in beautiful harmonies to heaven.
Like the psalmist, we will say: “I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart“. From the bottom of our hearts, we are grateful for Your faithfulness. You are with us. Thank You, Lord. “I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done.” We will tell of all the marvellous things He has done. This weekend alone, we have witnessed several baptisms in the Holy Spirit (I don’t know exact numbers, so many came out for prayer). The unsaved responded to the Gospel, lives were deeply touched by His Spirit, and His healing touch brought joy and laughter in place of pain. There have been powerful prophecies and worship that took us into the heavenlies. We have rejoiced in the presence of the Lord, for He has been absolutely marvellous in our eyes. We come to thank You with hearts full of gratitude. We love the Lord with all our hearts. Church was good yesterday. The place was full. We had visitors there for the first time who seemed to enjoy the service.
What was wonderful was that two people came for prayer after the service. Both have been attending since December last year. The wife found Christ a few weeks ago, and yesterday the husband came to Christ. He was very pleased, his wife delighted, and Graham and I were rejoicing in the work God is doing among us. It was lovely to share the good news with others. Alastair was elated. Over the last few weeks, he has felt a strong urge to pray for them both and witnessed the answers to his prayers yesterday. In this verse, Jesus says, ‘Go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.’ It’s time to start talking about what Jesus is doing. Share with your family, friends, and colleagues everything the Lord has accomplished. Tell them about the transforming power of Christ. Speak of the power of the Holy Spirit. Mention the gifts of the Spirit: speaking in tongues, interpretation, prophecy, healing, and deliverance. Share how kind God has been to you; how loving and forgiving He has been. It’s time to share. The Spirit is moving in many hearts and lives. When church is over and we return home to our families, tell them what He has done. Discuss it during your Sunday dinner. Tell your children and let them sense the wonder of what is happening—how God is transforming lives. Allow them to feel part of church life. Involve your family in sharing the good news and the joy of His work. We have a tremendous opportunity these days. Let’s not miss it. |