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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
Everybody experiences setbacks, disappointments, or failures. That can happen even when we have put our heart and soul and energy into life. Exam results have various emotional reactions.
Imagine this scene. Four fishermen have been out all night fishing – working hard, probably for ten hours, and they have caught nothing.
They are sorting out their nets, when Jesus Christ comes along.
Jesus got into Simon Peter’s boat, asking to be pushed out a little from the shore. We read the record of this incident in Luke Chapter 5.
From there, Jesus sat down to teach the crowd. When he finished teaching he asked Peter to launch out into deeper water and start fishing.
Peter explains how they have caught nothing after a hard night’s work, “but because you say so, I will let down the nets”.
The nets were soon so full of fish that they had to call their partners to come and help. These four fishermen were being blessed more than they could have imagined, catching more in a few minutes than they had caught in any one fishing expedition.
They had gone from ‘failure’ to ‘fullness’ within a short time.
We are all fishing for something – business or exam ‘success’, approval, someone to appreciate and love us – significance or security.
It was the same boat, the same Galilean Lake, the same fishermen – the only difference being, Jesus Christ was in the boat.
Their boat was how they made their living, and when Jesus was aboard the transformation was suddenly remarkable.
They did not have to change very much – not the location, the boat, or their partners.
Jesus was in their boat and in their business and he transformed that initially disappointing setback.
We often think God only uses our ‘successes’. He is also very good at using our failures!
“Loving God – we thank You for this amazing account of how it is possible to move from ‘failure to fullness’ within a short time - when You speak the word, Lord Jesus. Encourage us as we read and study Your Word – enable us to understand its truths and lessons – and then to share them with others. So help us Lord Jesus. Amen”
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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