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And when he [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” --Luke 5:4 Do you remember the story in the book of Luke when the disciples had fished all night and caught nothing? Seeing they were empty handed, Jesus told Simon Peter to throw the nets on the other side of the boat. Now, you can hear the lack of excitement in Simon Peter’s response when he said, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing!” But still he threw the net out as Jesus told him to do. And a miracle happened! They caught so many fish that their two boats began to take on water! So overwhelmed with what he saw, Simon Peter “fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (Luke 5:8). You see, Simon Peter came to the end of himself, but Jesus was just beginning! In fact, Jesus gave him a new calling saying, “From now on you’ll be catching men.” Have you reached the end of yourself?  Has your toil left you empty-handed? Are you exhausted from working in your own strength? If so, then it’s time to fall at Jesus’ feet. Yield to Jesus completely. Follow his direction. And he will restore you and prepare you to fulfill your calling in his kingdom.   HAVE YOU REACHED THE END OF YOURSELF? IF SO, THEN IT’S TIME TO FALL AT JESUS’ FEET.

When You Trust God and Things Go Wrong

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.”
Exodus 5:21–23

Sometimes the difficulties of life are the natural consequence of sins and mistakes. Sometimes they are God’s chastisement to encourage us to repent and return to Him. But there are times when we are doing right to the best of our ability and walking by faith when it seems like things just keep getting worse. The more we try to follow God, the harder our pathway becomes. This should not come as a surprise to us, for we have an active enemy who is committed to hindering us in our spiritual walk and work for God.
The critical thing for us to remember is that difficulty does not equal God’s displeasure. Sometimes the things which are most painful to us are in our lives because God is using them to work in a greater way than we can see. Paul faced this with the “thorn in the flesh” that came into his life. After his repeated prayers for its removal were not answered, Paul accepted his suffering as a gift, and gloried in God’s sufficient grace. “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). The Lord does not promise us ease and comfort, but He does promise us His grace.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

When you do right and things go wrong, keep trusting God and doing right.