ESOCS Devotional 17 December 2022
TEXT: JOHN 21:1-14
MEMORY VERSE: “And He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.” John 22:6
0 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 12 When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted lace ”
Our Lord Jesus is always with us at the side of the river of life. If we listen to Him and do what He says, we would always make large catches of fish. There are just two things we should do: to trust and obey Him. When the apostles obeyed they succeeded: they caught a multitude of fish. People who readily listen to Him and obey Him experience smoothness in the things they do. If we do things right, we would always get good results. This goes beyond Christian living or the quest for holiness and righteousness.
There are principles in life that lead people to success. If we apply them to our businesses or careers, we would always “find some”; that is, achieve success. Applying them is simply casting the net on the right side of the boat. This is doing things right and doing them in the right way, and for the right reason or purpose. We need to develop this attitude in us. It would help us in all areas. We need it in our relationship with people: our friends, colleagues, and associates so that we would do the proper things that would maintain those relationships. It would help us relate well with our spouse and run our marriage affairs properly. We would be able to bring up our children in the right manner. We would relate with our neighbours with godly dispositions. The way we conduct our private lives would be appropriate. We would handle our businesses and investments with due diligence. We would not cheat God in our tithes and offerings; we would pay our tithes correctly and not deduct from the ten per cent; and always give Him a good offering. All of these and many more would enhance our wellbeing and we would be better for it.
The apostles obeyed the command to “Cast the net on the right side of the boat” and got great results. Let us imitate them in simple obedience. That command was not only for them but for us too. The Scripture says, “Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Cor. 10:11). We are admonished to obey the word of God promptly. This would lead to our prosperity and happiness.
The apostles did not catch any fish until our Lord intervened in their circumstance. This shows us that in all things we are dependent on God. He is the One who supplies all our needs. He will do great things for us if we, like the apostles, learn to obey His commandment. As He speaks to us every time by the Holy Spirit, let us open our ears to hear His word, our hearts to accept them, and our minds to understand, meditate on them continually and practise them. If we desire to catch a multitude of fish, we must do the first thing first and that is simple obedience to the word of God with lowliness of heart and great humility. This is our own part to play.
CHALLENGES
- Itemize the difficulties you experience when you try to do the right things.
- Map out how you can begin to deal with them and remove them completely.
PRAYERS
- Pray that the Holy Spirit would be ever present with you at all times.
- Pray for God to grant you the wisdom to walk with Him all the days of your life.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
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ESOCS Devotional 17 December 2022
