A Word from the Lord!
Wednesday, Cristina and I had the privilege of hearing Bishop Jakes preach at Bethany. He definitely came with a word from the Lord in his mouth. He preached from John 21 as his text on the subject "The Last Night on the Boat".
Peter and the rest of the disciples were reeling from the tragedy of Jesus' death. Peter said, "I go fishing", symbolizing a return to the familiar. His boat was a security blanket. How often in the midst of tragedy, do we return to the comfortable and familiar. Remember, it was on this fishing boat that Jesus called Peter to be a disciple and become a fisher of men(Mt. 4:19). A long process of completion had begun with this call. Peter had many up and downs, but now the completed work was to be established.
In John 21, Jesus appears to Peter. This would be his last night on the boat. The last night in the comfort zone. The last night of holding on to the security blanket. As Jesus spoke with Peter on the shore, he asked, "Do you love me?" Peter answered with a yes! Jesus responded with the command,"Feed my sheep." These words became the launching point for Peter's ministry. He was done fishing for fish, and was ready to fish for men. There is no record of Peter ever returning to the boat. He had become completed. No need to return back to his past. He was stepping out into the destiny of the Lord for his life.
Hearing this message, I was reminded of the decision my family made to leave Ohio and move to Orlando. Ohio was my comfort zone of familiarity and security. Even though I knew I could not fulfill the destiny over my life in that place, there was a certain sense of security being there in my "fishing boat". I am so thankful that the master called to us and we responded. As Peter, we let go of our nets, and began swimming towards the shore. Orlando was that shore, and Jesus had many souls prepared, awaiting our arrival! This truly is a new beginning for our family and ministry. Destiny and purpose lay before us. I cannot wait to see what God will do through our act of obedience. The best is yet to come!
Phil 3:13
No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,
1 comment:
Well all i can say is Amen to that! I am so thankful to GOd for what he is doing through this ministry and all the things that are yet to come. I've said this before but I don't think that i can say it enough, I am so thankful that y'all are here in Orlando. The testimony of the move encourages people to step out of their own boat and enter in to the destiny and purpose that God has for them, which comes with tremendous sacrafice. It is definitely all worth it! This is what i took out of all of this, and I am ready and willing to learn more and more!
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