New Year, New Life

 

Peter was ready to go back to his old life. The one he had before Jesus interrupted him on these shores, and out there on the sea. His grandfather had been a fisherman, his dad, and he was too. That's just who he was meant to be. His heritage, his identity, his destiny.

"I am going fishing," he said to the others. "Who's with me?"

"I'm in," Thomas said, needing to clear his head. He was still trying to figure out if he'd actually seen Jesus before they left Jerusalem. It had seemed so real, but--

"Me too," Nathanael sighed, not understanding why they were back here again--why Jesus had told them to return home to Galilee instead of remaining where all the excitement was. Sure they were scared, but at least the news was buzzing of Jesus being alive.

John was reluctant to follow the others. They had waited all day for Jesus to meet them here on the hillside like He said, but Jesus hadn't come and he was hungry. They had nothing left to eat.

"Come on, little brother," James said. "You heard the boss."

He went to get in the boat with the others who had all agreed with Peter, as usual. One of these days he was going to get up the gumption to not follow that know-it-all, but tonight he felt powerless, hopeless, and abandoned.

It had been a crazy two weeks. First Jesus had ridden through the streets of Jerusalem on a donkey with everyone calling Him the Blessed One sent from God, only to call for His death after the Passover feast. He'd never been so scared in his life or devastated, but Jesus was alive? He had risen from the dead like He said, and he had seen with his own eyes--twice? Could it really be?

Peter was beyond confusion. Beyond understanding God at all. Was He going to rescue them or not? First Jesus was dead, and now He was back? What the heck? He was done trying to figure that dude out. So he was back to fishing. Something predictable and worthwhile and...'Where are all the fish? We should be bringing in our first catch by now, but the net is still empty.'

By dawn everyone was ready to head home and get some breakfast. Nathanael knew it would be good to see the wife and kids. He wasn't sure what to tell them. Surely they'd heard the terrible news by now, but would they believe the good news? He sighed at the thought of having to tell another tall-tale, but what else could he do? He'd come this far with getting everyone to believe his latest Jacob's-ladder sighting; And only time would tell what the Messiah's resurrection meant. Jesus had told them it would happen, but He hadn't said what came next.

They were getting close to shore when he saw someone sitting beside a fire on the beach. Standing to His feet the man called out, "Do you have any fish?"

"No!"

“Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”

He heard John gasp. "It's Jesus!"

"No, it's not," Peter argued. "You're imagining things."

"No, I'm not! It's Him! Do what He said!"

Nathanael had never heard young John be so adamant with Peter. He could get riled up with his brother sometimes, but he had a respectful fear of others with strong personalities, until now. He didn't even take it from Thomas when he tried to agree with Peter.

"You finally saw Him for yourself! Do you still not believe?"

"I'm not rowing all the way back out there," Peter said in his matter-of-fact way, but John held his ground.

"He didn't say we have to go back. Just let the net down here! If it's Him, we'll know soon enough."

So they cast the net into the shallow water, and sure enough the fish practically jumped into the boat. When they tried to haul the net in, they couldn't without fear of breaking it.

"It is the Lord!" John said again, and they all knew he was right.

Even Peter didn't argue and jumped into the water, heading for the shore. Nathanael wanted to do the same but just smiled and helped the others with dragging the full net to the beach. He wasn't sure if he was ever going to get used to Jesus proving Himself over and over, but for the moment he had no doubt, and he knew there was no rush. Jesus would be waiting when he got there.

***

It's easy to think that once Jesus rose from the dead and they saw Him with their own eyes, His disciples never doubted Jesus' words again, but I'm sure they did--many, many times. It's just human nature to doubt, like Adam and Eve did in the Garden, like Abraham did in Canaan, like Moses did in the wilderness, like David...On and on we see God's people doubting His words, His presence, His promises, and we see ourselves in their stories.

But even though we doubt, our God is still faithful. He patiently guides us, helps us, teaches us--day after day, week after week, and year after year.

We celebrate Christmas to remember the birth of Jesus--God coming to be with us and become one of us; to become a sacrifice for our sins and provide salvation for all people.

And I think celebrating the New Year can be a time for us to remember that Jesus rose from the dead, ascended into Heaven to sit in the place of authority at the Father's right hand, and then sent His Spirit to be with us and bring new life to our often doubtful and troubled hearts. It's 2023 but He still has not abandoned us, just as He promised: I am with you always. (Matthew 28:20) 

I hope you step into the New Year with confidence. I hope you don't feel abandoned or powerless. I hope you are counting on Jesus to see you through the coming days, weeks, and months; whatever they hold. I hope you are expecting Jesus to fill up your net with abundant blessings and miraculous moments.

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong...May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (Eph. 3:16-19)

I wish you a joy-filled, hopeful New Year, full of grace and truth. 💜

Italicized scripture taken from John 21, Matthew 28, (ESV); and Ephesians 3 (NLT)

Truth Over Fear

"The truth will set you free."

John 8:32

 

Several months ago I wrote a blogpost titled, "Love Over Fear". We looked at how love leads to joy and joy leads to peace, as Paul points out when he wrote about the Fruit of the Spirit. I encouraged you to focus on loving God, loving others, and loving yourself. Having a heart of thankfulness, unselfishness, and trust in God's love for you can go a long way to help in overcoming fear.

Today I want to talk a little more specifically about how focusing on love can bring peace by looking at how truth plays a role in this. Truth is something that can bring on feelings of fear and also chase them away. For instance, you know bad things happen in our world. This is a sad reality of life. Violence, crime, hurtful words: every day we are reminded of the cruelty of others; Tornadoes, floods, food shortages, disease...I could go on and on about the real or potential perils we face.

But the truth also tells us that God will care for us, protect us, and bring good things out of bad circumstances. Threats to our well-being are real, but so is God's mercy.

The same is true regarding the condition of our hearts. We are sinful. We do the wrong things, make poor decisions, put our own needs above the needs of others. The reality of our sin can make us cower in shame, try to cover up our mistakes, and leave us feeling guilty and unworthy of anything good.

But God's mercy is also real. His love brings forgiveness and the courage to come into the light, admitting our failures and weaknesses and asking for help to overcome our clumsy, messy selves.

In 1 John 4:18 it says, There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

Believing in God's love for you is a key factor to overcoming fear in your life, whether it's fear of your mistakes being exposed, others hurting you in some way, or not having what you need. These are real fears with real consequences. But God's love is greater.

I encourage you to make a list of your current fears. Write them down to get them out in the open, not merely swimming through your mind. When you've completed your list, go through them one by one. How can believing in God's love for you erase these fears? Try to write one truth beside each current or potential crisis, such as: God is with me, God will protect me; God will provide for me; God will help me; God forgives me; God loves me unconditionally; God works all things together for my good, or whatever truth can apply (perhaps a specific Bible verse). Write those words on the same line as your fear and then cross-out the fear you listed.

When you are finished, pray about the fears you crossed-out; Ask God to help you believe what you already know is true. Then ask Him to reveal truths that are greater than your fears that remain. You might need to search the Bible or ask someone to help you look for specific words God spoke and promises He has made that can bring you peace about these things.

If God didn't want us to have peace, He wouldn't have given us the Bible and His Spirit to teach us the truth and help us believe. But the truth is He did; and He can put our fears to rest and help the fruit of peace to flourish in our hearts and minds.

 

Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil...having fastened the belt of truth...and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.

Ephesians 6:10-11,14-15

 

 

Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

When God Paints the Clouds

There is no one like my God. He rides across the heavens to help me, on the clouds of His majesty.

Deuteronomy 33:26

I love clouds. I love when they bring refreshing rain. I love them on sunny days when they appear like fluffy marshmallows in the sky. And I love when they turn beautiful colors of pink and orange at sunset.

 

 

But clouds aren't always welcome. Sometimes they bring too much rain and long, gloomy days. Sometimes they bring terrible storms that cause floods and great destruction. Sometimes they block the stars and the moon when I'd like to see a celestial event--I'm a bit of an astronomy nerd.

 

In the Bible, clouds are often used to remind us of God's presence. When Noah and his family emerged from the ark to a whole new world of shifted lands and climate change, God knew the rain and clouds might be a reminder of the terrible flood, so He made them a promise:

"I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth...Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life." (Gen. 9:13,15)

 

  

Many years later when Moses was blessing Israel, he said:

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun (Israel), who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." (Deut. 33:26-27)

 

David wrote a song that says:

 

Sing to God,

sing in praise of his name,

extol him who rides on the clouds.

(Ps. 68:4)

 

  

And in the Book of Revelation, John proclaimed: 

“Look, he is coming with the clouds." (Rev. 1:7)

 

  

When God paints the clouds with a beautiful sunrise or sunset, I believe He's reminding us of His constant presence in a beautiful, eye-catching way we can't miss. From morning until night and throughout the darkness, He is with us--always.

 

But when clouds come into our lives, they can make God's presence and truth seem--well, cloudy! And it can be discouraging, disheartening, and difficult to believe He's still with us. But He is! Clouds of gloom can become clouds of majesty.

 

 

When I was young, I went through a difficult time of being bullied. I didn't want to go to school, but my mom shared a verse in the Bible that says:

"Be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid;

do not be discouraged,

for the LORD your God will

be with you wherever you go.”

(Joshua 1:9)

I asked God to help me not be afraid, and I trusted Him to take care of me, and He did. It was still hard at times, but He showed me His presence in many ways, and He was faithful to lead me into new friendships and activities I may not have chosen otherwise. I've been through a lot of trials since then, but I've always found God to be faithful to me.

 

I think this one looks like a heart 💙

 

I want to encourage you to trust God with whatever you're going through. Ask for His help. Ask Him to show you He is with you. If you did something wrong and need to confess your sin, confess it and believe in His forgiveness. And if you did nothing wrong but life is hard anyway, look for better days to come. Look for the rainbows. Look for God to paint your clouds, and He will, because He is always there.

 

 

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 100:3-5

 

 

 

Deut. 33:26: personal paraphrase mine