Where Are You Fishing?

Luke 5:1-7 (NLT) 5:1 One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. 2 He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3 Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.” 5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” 6 And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 7 A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.

As a boy growing up I spent a lot of time with my dad fishing. It was his hobby and passion and I enjoyed it also. It was interesting to watch him fish. He would drop his line into the water and if he got no bites – he would move to another location. If he did, he would stay there all day. The idea was to catch fish – not just stand still in the same location. We would move up and down the river for miles at a time until we got the perfect place. I remember one such hole that we found in the Yosemite mountain areas. We we’re hiking from the upward regions to the valley. While walking along a stream we decided to throw our lines just for fun. It was amazing – we we’re pulling out fish of all sizes right and left. I think sometimes as Christians that some of us are fishing in the wrong holes. We are wasting our energies in places that bring little or no results. In the case of the disciples – they we’re fishing in the shallow waters and God wanted them to go into the deeper waters. I find myself wondering about the places that I’m fishing in right now – both personally and professionally. I am drawn by that phrase – “go out where it is deeper.” I want a deeper relationship with God but I get in my own way. It is too easy to get distracted, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing.” The excuses tend to mount up and up. It is time for all of us to evaluate our fishing holes and see if we are where God wants us to fish and are we reaping the benefits of our efforts. If we’re in the wrong place – we all need to pick up our line and move to where we should be. God will reward faithfulness and will reward obedience.