The Gospel (John 21:1-14) reading brings us these words:
"Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, 'Children, you have no fish, have you?' They answered him, 'No." He said to them, 'Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.' So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish." John 21:4-6
Jesus made all the difference. Those disciples had fished all night and had no luck. Jesus comes on the scene and makes them successful.
Let me give you some thoughts here to contemplate. Have you had failure in any kind of endeavor where you just gave up? What would it be like for you to offer prayer to Jesus and ask for his blessing? Think, too, of how those fishermen must have looked going out one more time when they had a dry spell all night! What we might do might seem to be foolish, but again, with the Lord's blessings, we could very well be successful.
So, how much does Jesus become a part of your life in times of failure? Are you willing to trust him for one more attempt at something? Think now of the ramifications for doing work in outreach for the church. It might be easy to give up and say we have done our best in this town to reach people. Might there not be another nook that hasn't been tried?
I would ask you to contemplate these words as you prepare for worship on Sunday.
Pastor Marty