Christ Church Daily Devotion Oct 6 2023

Jesus teaches a crowd from Simon's boat and then tells Simon to fish in deep water. Simon is hesitant but does as Jesus says and catches so many fish that his boat nearly sinks. Simon realizes Jesus' greatness and his own insignificance. Jesus tells Simon to not be afraid and that he will fish for people. Simon and his companions leave everything to follow Jesus. God cares about our daily lives and wants to help us. We should reflect on God's goodness and share that joy with others. Welcome to Christ Church's Daily Devotion for October 6, 2023. Today we will be reading from Luke chapter 5, verses 1 through 11. One day as Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, Put out into deep water and let down the nets for a catch. Simon answered, Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything, but because you say so, I will let down the nets. And when they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, Go away from me, Lord, I am a sinful man. For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken. And so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, Don't be afraid. From now on you will fish for people. So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything, and followed him. From the moment that we humans sinned and separated ourselves from God, God has been fishing for people. Jesus invited his first disciples and his followers ever since to join in that creative mission. Peter had no interest in doing any more fishing. He was tired, plus they had not caught anything, so why bother? But Jesus insisted, and Peter relented. This was a moment of truth for Peter. He was saying, I will try again, your way. When he did, the catch of fish was so great, the boat nearly sank. Peter must have been awestruck at this miracle, and his first response was to realize his own insignificance in comparison to Jesus' greatness. Jesus had helped many people, but Peter was amazed that Jesus cared about his day-to-day routine and understood his needs. God is not only interested in saving us, but in helping us in our daily lives. As followers of Jesus, we can celebrate his greatness and intervention in our lives. And because of that, we want to share that with others. Today's personal worship option, reflect on the goodness of God in your life. Look for opportunities to share some of that joy with someone today.