Day 249: God's Fish

John 21; 2 Chronicles 33; Psalm 89:1-18

The disciples went back out into the boat to fish. They did what they knew; whether it was because they didn't know what else to do now that Jesus wasn't with them or they simply felt like fishing, I don't know. But the point of this story is that until Jesus showed up and gave them direction, they didn't catch anything. Without God, we can do nothing, John 15 says that. But with Christ there, guiding us, we will be more successful and blessed (not by worldly standards, mind you) than we could ever imagine. I think it is also interesting that when they get back to shore, Jesus already has fish cooking. He doesn't need the disciples to bring fish, just like he doesn't need us to save people--that's God's job. And yet, he tells them to bring what they caught anyway. It isn't our job to catch the fish, but to be obedient, fish and cast our nets where God tells us to. This is the same with our sharing of the gospel with people. We don't save them, that's God's job. We simply must be obedient to share the message of Jesus Christ.

Man, when I first started reading this chapter of Chronicles, I was so frustrated! Hezekiah did so much good and then his son ruins it! Manasseh rebuilt all the shrines, sacrificed his sons, and worshipped all sorts of things. It made God angry and so he let their enemies defeat him. But God wasn't done with Manasseh yet. While he was rotting in chains, Manasseh must have done some thinking. He repented and God did what only God can do: forgave him completely and restored him. Through the deepest, darkest time in his life, Manasseh realized who God was and the devotion he deserved. And because of his prayer to The Lord, God poured out his love on him and redeemed him. It doesn't matter what our past is, how terrible we've been--God saved Manasseh, he will save us if our hearts truly cry out in repentance.

This psalm is beautiful. It is a praise of who God is and what being in his presence does for us. God is mighty and powerful and being a  part of his "festival" and walking in the "brightness" of his presence makes us blessed, happy, strong, and honorable. My goal sometimes is simply to soak up God's presence, not expect anything from him, because really, if he never gave me anything else in my life, just being his child, being in his presence should and would be enough.