Recently I was reading the story about Simon Peter in the book of Luke. This particular incident takes place just before he became an Apostle. Simon Peter was a fisherman by trade. It happens that on this particular day the fish just were not biting. Meanwhile, Jesus was preaching to thousands of people. He looked at the situation and told Simon Peter to lower his net to the other side of the boat...keeping in mind that he had already been fishing all night and didn’t catch anything.
Peter could have said no; you are a carpenter and I am the experienced fisherman. But he didn’t. He could have said that’s a crazy idea and makes no sense. But he didn’t. He could have said I am too tired. But he didn’t. He could have told Jesus to use another boat instead. But he didn’t. If Peter would have said anything other than yes, he would have missed the most important experience of his life.
Peter’s reply demonstrates the beginning of a lifetime of faith in God. He said “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing: nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net.” (5:5) The soon-to-be disciple chose to obey the Lord and to leave the consequences of his decision to Him.
As a result of Peter’s obedience, Jesus demonstrated His power and sovereignty. Peter and his partners may have started the day off thinking their efforts had yielded nothing. But it ended in complete amazement because they pulled in not one but two overflowing boatloads of fish. (Luke: 5-7). Saying yes to the Lord’s request resulted in a miracle that transformed not only one fisherman’s life, but the lives of the entire group.
My takeaway is that often God’s greatest blessings come as a result of our willingness to do something that may appear to be insignificant or beyond the bounds of possibility. So, I invite you to take pause and ask yourself, “Has God been asking you to do something seemingly unimportant that you have not yet made an effort to accomplish? Is there anything you have rationalized by saying, it’s too difficult, I don’t have time, it’s just not my thing, it’s a waste of time, or it won’t make any difference? Last question, have you ever been disappointed in obeying God?" Me either. I have come to believe that obeying God in small matters is an essential step in receiving God’s greatest blessings! Oh, how priceless is the joy that fills our hearts as we do! Yes, my Brothers and Sisters...there is JOY in serving!
On that note, the Men’s and Women’s weekends are coming up and a lot of planning and preparations are happening as I write this. There will be countless ways you can come and serve as the weekends approach. Now is a good time to ask God to show you how you can be of service to Him. Those areas may be supplying Palanca for the tables, coming and serving meals, decorating tables, making food donations, and most importantly praying for the weekends.
Keep an eye out for the SignUp Genius links coming soon, as many of the food items that will be needed for the weekend can be found there. If you would prefer to make a monetary donation there is a PayPal link on the website to do that as the Lord leads you.
May God bless you as you reflect on the above questions and how God may be giving you the opportunity to serve Him with your particular gifts and talents.
God loves you and so do I!
Nancy Walk
Palanca Chair