Thank you for praying for me while I was in the USA last week. I needed your prayers. In ten days I had to make nine flights through eight airports. And because of bad weather and cancelled flights to Chicago and Miami, I also had to navigate a one way, over night, car rental through rural Missouri and Illinois (I made it thanks to Daryl and the good people at Enterprise). Arriving about 10:00pm into St Louis airport, 200 miles short of my actual destination, waiting for my luggage that seemed to have got lost somewhere between Seattle and Dallas and wondering if I was going to get a car rental before the office shut for the evening, worrying whether I would find, let alone make my destination for the first presentation the next morning, the Lord sent me an angel. Akeel Sachar came out of no where and said “Hello Stephen, what are you doing here?” as if we had just met on Waterloo Station. He just happened to be passing through St Louis airport late that evening from New York.
With your prayers I managed to give sixteen presentations in nine locations in three time zones as well as the bridge the insurmountable hurdle of simultaneous translation into American English. The final test however, was navigating the motorways circumventing Orlando in search of an international airport for the flight home. To say the motorway signs and strategically placed roadworks were less than helpful would be an understatement. Both I and my driver were spatially challenged for 90 minutes, despite stopping twice to ask directions, including a police officer, and making several distress phone calls. Nevertheless, the turning for the airport still eluded us, until I humbled myself and we visited the tourist centre next to Disneyworld, picked up a map and made it to the airport just in time to find my flight home via Dallas was cancelled and I was being re-routed later that evening via Chicago. To cheer myself up, and remind me to persevere, I bought myself a teeshirt from the NASA store at Orlando airport. NASA’s motivational slogan is “Failure is not an option”.
We all make mistakes, and sometimes they are
big ones. Failure to complete our mission can either stump us or it can provide
a launch pad. A learning opportunity.
An incident in Peter’s life illustrates this wonderful truth.
In Luke 5:1-11, we find that despite a whole night of fishing, Peter and his friends hadn’t caught a sprat. They were not novices but professional fishermen. Peter would have had a good boat and the best nets. He knew exactly where to catch the most fish. He had worked all night. The lives of his family depended on a good catch. But this morning, Peter had come ashore empty handed. But what we find in this incident is a wonderful truth: A failure can become a stepping stone.
That morning – a bit like today – no doubt feeling tired and discouraged – the disciples were washing their nets on the seashore, when Jesus came along. "Peter,” he said, “I'd like to use your boat as a platform to speak from." So Peter let Jesus get into his boat and launch out a little way from the shore.
After addressing the crowd on the shore, Jesus said to the disciples, "Now let's go fishing. Launch out into the deep water and let down the nets for a catch."
But Peter replied, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. Yet if you say so, I'll let down the nets." When the disciples obeyed, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.
What does this story teach us about failure? Jesus always used his miracles to illustrate principles. He never performed a miracle without a purpose. This incident teaches us what to do when our best is not good enough.
Sometimes you give it your best shot but you
still come up 10 feet short. You study diligently for a test but only get a
"C."
You work hard to make your marriage better but still don't see any progress.
It's tempting to give up. You feel like saying, "What's the use? I just
set myself up for more failure. Can anything make a difference?"
This morning I want us to make comparison between the two catches. The disciples had worked all night and caught nothing, but later went out for ten minutes and probably caught their life time best catch. Think about it. It was the same lake, the same boat, the same nets, and the same people fishing. So what made the difference? There are actually three differences between the two fishing expeditions, and these three differences give us principles to follow when our best attempts end in failure.
Lets see what we can learn from these three principles, about how we too can live life the way God intended. Remember God doesn’t want us to fail. He does not delight in our failure. He wants us to make a genuine success in life as we follow the his simple instructions.
1. Appropriate God’s Presence in your
Life (Luke 5:3)
“He
got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out
a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.” (Luke 5:3)
The clue to the first principle of success is found in Luke 5:3. Jesus was in the boat with the disciples. Christ's presence made a big difference! This time the disciples weren't fishing by themselves; God was with them. The first principle for successful living therefore is this. If you want success in life, you’ve got to have Jesus in your boat.
That's the starting point. Nothing has greater influence on your personal success than whether or not you are living with Christ in your life. Now in Peter's life his boat represented his livelihood. When you're a fisherman, your boat is your business! It's significant that Peter made his boat available for Jesus to use. Christ used Peter's business as a platform for ministry.
How about yours? Does God have access to your boat? Is your business available for him to use at any time? Is he able to minister to people through your job? Too often we try to separate the secular and the spiritual. We have our Christian life nicely partitioned off from our career. But this prevents God from blessing your business or job. The truth is, God will only bless what we give him, what we give him back, what we dedicate to him, entrust to him. God will bless what we give him. If Jesus asked to use your career for his purposes what would you say? What about your family? Your home? Your assets? Your time? Your boat?
God promises us that if we, “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness… all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33). Does that mean if I give my whole life to Christ, putting him first in every area, then will he bless it all? Yes, that is God's promise to you. Is Jesus asking you today to allow him access to your life for his purposes? If you have never responded to his call on your life, then do so today. Jesus is saying to you today,
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with them, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20)
If you have never invited Jesus into your life, then I urge you not to delay. The first principle we learn is this: To experience God’s blessing in your life, appropriate God’s presence in your life.
2. Cooperate with God’s Plan for Your
Life (Luke 5:4-7)
“When he had finished
speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for
a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and
haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6
When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets
began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat
to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they
began to sink.” (Luke 5:4-7)
The second principle is you must cooperate with God’s plan in your life. The second time the disciples went fishing, they fished under the direction of Christ. While they may have had more experience at fishing, they obeyed the instructions of the one who had created the fish. In order to experience God’s blessing, we must not only appropriate God’s presence in our lives, but also cooperate with God’s plan for our lives. Jesus told the disciples where to fish, when to fish, and how to fish. When God is guiding your life, you cannot fail. As Ethel Waters says, "God doesn't sponsor flops."
Peter’s reaction to Christ’s guidance is beautiful. Peter didn’t argue, he didn’t listen to his feelings, he didn’t ask questions or give excuses and… he didn’t hesitate. He obeyed. He cooperated with God’s plan. And what a result!
Why do you think Jesus said to Peter, "Launch out into the deep?" I think it was because it's in the deep water that we get out of our depth, out of our comfort zone. Peter’s instinct and experience might have told him that the fish are caught in the shallows not the deep. At dawn not the middle of the day.
But that was when and where the Lord sent him and the fish to meet in the deep water to convince Peter that there was no natural explanation for this catch. That Jesus was in control of his life and the fish. Many people live in the shallow waters of life. They simply exist on a superficial level. There's little depth to their lives because they're content to just play around the edge, never getting out into deeper water. Why? Because it's safer in shallow water. They think, "If I get out into the deep water there might be some waves. They might rock my boat, and it might overturn. So I'll just stay back here where it's safe and comfortable and fiddle around."
When God works in your life, it always involves risks because God wants us to live by faith. Many Christians barely get their feet wet because they are afraid of getting in over their heads. They fear, “If I get serious and commit to serving Christ in my local Church, I’m afraid I will get out of my depth and he’ll make me a fanatic or over commit. My family might get upset. What will my friends think? So they are content to hide in the shadows of life and remain closet Christians.
Cooperating with God’s plan for your life won’t necessarily lead to a safe life or even a long life. But one thing he guarantees. It will never be boring and always fulfilling. This week one of our church family lost his job because he has made it plain he is a Christian. On business trips he refused to go to the bars and strip joints with the other men and that made them feel embarrassed. He has been determined not compromise his values or morals. That threatened them. I believe God will honour him.
It was the same reason I went to the States for ten days. It wasn’t to make money or gain popularity. It certainly wasn’t to get a suntan. Although I spent some time in Florida I didn’t get round to the beaches or a look at the sea except from the air. I went because I want to help change the face of American Christianity and its outlook on the Middle East. Slowly churches are waking up to the realisation that the future of the Middle East peace process, humanly speaking, lies in the hands of the Christian community in America. The most influential group in the most powerful country in the world.
The majority, however, have not woken up yet to that fact that, like the Church in Britain, we are still more a part of the problem than the solution. If you want to know why, check out details of my new book coming out in October. Its called Zion’s Christian Soldiers. It examines what the Bible has to say about the relationship between Israel and the Church.
Taking this kind of stand may not make me popular and it certainly won’t make me rich. But I do believe this is God’s plan for my life, along with serving here with you as a pastor teacher.
God’s plan for your life is a good plan too, one that will bring fulfilment to you and blessing to others. God says, “Let me get into your boat. Let my presence be with you wherever you go – in your business, in your family, in your marriage, in every area, of your life and let me share with you my plan for your life. You are special and unique and I planned you for my pleasure and for a purpose.”
The first step. Appropriate God’s presence
in your life.
The second step. Cooperate with God’s plan for your life.
3. Trust God’s Promises with your Life (Luke 5:8-11)
“When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” (Luke 5:8-11)
The third principle is you must trust God’s promises in your life. Peter demonstrated this in verse 5 when he said, "Because you say so." In the second fishing attempt the disciples acted on the basis of God's promise to them. They went fishing again because they believed God would provide the fish. Now notice, Jesus didn’t specifically say, “Peter, if you go fishing again with me, I promise you will get your biggest catch.”
That would have been too easy. All Jesus said was “put down your nets for a catch.” For the purpose God had in mind for Peter was so much greater than a net full of fish. But Peter and his friends would never have been able to comprehend that mission until they had first experienced the blessing that comes from trusting in God’s promises.
Peter trusted Jesus that if he told him to put his nets down, it was worth doing. Peter expected God to act. He expected Jesus to keep his promise. And when Jesus did, it made Peter feel more of the sinner he really was. Obeying Jesus is scary. You learn a lot about yourself and it is not always comfortable. But from now on Peter wasn’t trusting in his own fishing ability anymore. He trusted Jesus, and that was all that mattered.
And because Peter trusted Jesus, he enabled the Lord to take Peter much deeper still. “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” (Luke 5:10). If Luke’s account is chronological as we think, then this promise was made early on in their relationship. While Jesus was revealing Peter’s true calling – fishing for people – it would take another couple of year’s training, several more failures, even denials and deep repentance, as well as the Pentecostal working of the Holy Spirit, before Peter would indeed be fishing for people. But all God’s plans for the rest of his life were all contained in this promise. And the adventure only began when Peter trusted in that second deeper, more awesome promise.
“Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” (Luke 5:10-11)
Application? When you get God's presence in your boat, and when you get God's plan in your head, and when you get God's promises in your heart, you cannot fail. If you fall, you will be falling into God’s grace, falling into God’s provision.
Maybe you're saying, "That sounds great, but you don't know me and my circumstances. Right now I'm defeated by my problems. I'm having some really hard times." If you are defeated by your circumstances, let me suggest an antidote. Begin a list of the promises God makes in the New Testament to his children and read them and memorise them and live by them. Like Peter, start expecting God to act and you will find that God's promise will inject new hope into a hopeless situation. Real growth often begins at the point of failure.
Remember that the disciples caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. God blessed them with more than they could handle. That is always the case when you appropriate God's presence, cooperate with God's plan, and anticipate God's promises – you’ll be blessed with more than you can handle. In fact, verse 7 points out that the disciples had to share the results with those in another boat in order to keep from sinking! That's a great way to live!
How does this story relate to your life? Maybe you feel like the disciples before Christ came along: "I've worked all night and come up with an empty net." Does that describe your attitude toward your marriage, your job, or toward another personal problem? You feel that you haven't made any progress so you've said to yourself, "What's the use? Why keep on trying? Why put forth the effort?" Maybe you've become a little cynical about life.
Peter didn't get cynical. He didn't say, "Lord, I've worked 10 hours and didn't catch anything. That must mean there are no more fish in this lake." He knew that the fish were there, but that he just hadn't caught them yet. Just because you haven't solved your problem doesn't mean there isn't a solution. Through failure we often learn the lessons that help us succeed. God's message to you is this: Don't give up. Try again, but this time, do it with Jesus in your boat. He will make all the difference.
Three simple steps to rebound from failure:
Step one. Appropriate God’s presence in your
life.
Step two. Cooperate with God’s plan for your life.
Step three. Trust God’s Promises with your life.
Lets pray.
[1] With grateful thanks to Rick Warren and “God’s Answer to Life’s Difficult Questions” (Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 2006), chapter 2 for most of the ideas and much of the content for this talk.