Pastor Stephen Dedman

Tag: evangelism

Going Fishing

Encouragement, Faith

Going Fishing

Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
John 21:3

Fishing For The Familiar

It’s amazing how quickly we can forget our mission and purpose in life.  As Christians we are commanded by Christ to make disciples.  But sometimes we lose focus of the big picture and lean toward seeking fulfillment of what we “want” to do.  Especially when we face discouraging moments.

This was the case with Peter.  Peter was facing a difficult time.  On one hand he knew he was suppose to serve Christ and fulfill the mission of sharing the gospel with others.  But on the other hand, he was dealing with guilt and shame because he denied Jesus.  Peter started doing what he use to do.  He went fishing because he lost his mission and vision of serving Christ.

For over three years Peter had followed Jesus close enough to know that he was a soul winner and no longer a fisherman.  Jesus told him that he was the “Rock” that would build the church and the gates of Hell could not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)  But sadly, when Jesus was distant, Peter went back to fishing again as he did before he met Christ.  It was the easy thing to do.  When he started battling discouragement he gave up and retreated to something familiar.  But notice they caught nothing all night.  He wasn’t a fisherman, he was still a fisher of men.

Let’s stay focussed on what God has called us to do and keep making disciples.

Prayer

Lord, help me to focus on Your love and keep me in your loving arms.

Rejoice In The Lord

Encouragement, Trust

Rejoice In The Lord

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭3:18‬

 

God Is In Control

Habakkuk was experiencing some very tough economic times. Verse 17 tells us what was happening.  There were no figs on the trees, no grapes on the vines, no oil to cook with, no crops growing and no animals for meat. This simply means there was nothing to eat or drink and the future was not very promising.  People would panic if that were to happen today.

Habakkuk remained positive and faithful as verse 18 shines rays of hope. Habakkuk knew God was the source of everything. He knew that God is the Creator and Sustainer and could make anything happen. He knew God had everything under control. If God wasn’t going to allow the earth to produce then somehow everything would work out in His timing.  That’s why he says, “yet I will rejoice in the Lord and take joy in the God of my salvation.”  Even in the worst case senerio he knew he would be saved, even if he died.

Don’t focus on your circumstances. Focus on praising the One who controls everything. Circumstances can change quickly.  There was not a lot of food, but Jesus fed 5,000 men.  There was no wine at a wedding feast but Jesus saved the best for last.  To rejoice in the Lord when things are not going well means you know that God has something great in the works.  People all around you may be down in the dumps and depressed but you could be the one who brings hope and encouragement as a solution. Your attitude and actions reflect how you trust God.

Prayer

Praise God for what He has provided and you will not dwell on what you are lacking. God will provide what you need. Thank Him in advance.

No Doubt

Encouragement, Faith, Trust

No Doubt

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭1:7‬

Casting out all fear and doubt

Satan uses tools of fear and doubt to keep us from doing extraordinary things.  God gives us power, love and a sound mind to do things that glorify Him.  But sometimes we limit God because of the fear and doubt we possess in our minds.

In Matthew 17:14-21 a man came to Jesus and begged for his son to be healed from demonic convulsions associated with epilepsy. Previously the man brought his son before the disciples but they couldn’t heal him. Immediately Jesus cast the demon out and the boy was healed. The disciples asked why they couldn’t cast it out and Jesus replied, “Because of your unbelief.”  He said if they had mustard seed-sized faith they could move mountains and nothing would be impossible for them. The problem wasn’t with their faith.  They had faith.  The problem was with their unbelief or doubt.  He gave them a solution: “this kind (of unbelief) does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” 

The devil plants seeds of doubt into our minds subconsciously and sometimes we are not aware of it.  We must protect our minds and be sure of what we are hearing and seeing is full of truth and not lies of Satan. Jesus said to fast and pray.  Fasting and praying starves the flesh of self desires and feeds our souls with the Spirit of God.

Is there anything ungodly that you should eliminate by fasting and praying?

Prayer

Pray in the Name of Jesus to have all fear, unbelief and doubt removed from your mind and replaced with God’s power, love and truth.