August 28, 2024 What It Means to Fish from the Right Side of Your Boat
Wednesday, August 28, 2024
Fishing From the Right Side of Your Boat
Simon Peter announced, “I’m going fishing.”
The rest of them replied, “We’re going with you.” They went out and got in the boat. They caught nothing that night. When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the beach,
but they didn’t recognize him.
Jesus spoke to them: “Good morning! Did you catch anything for breakfast?”
They answered, “No.”
He said, “Throw the net off the right side of the boat and see what happens.”
They did what he said. All of a sudden there were so many fish in it,
they weren’t strong enough to pull it in.
John 21:4-6, The Message
I am not an evangelist. And I have the spiritual gifts inventory results to prove it. My strength of that gift landed in the bottom third of the 31 possibilities. Imagine my astonishment (tinged with fear of failure) when, at the persuasion and invitation of a friend, I found myself speaking for an outreach group to women in East Texas. The topic: my story of coming to faith in Jesus Christ.
At the end of my presentation, I offered the prayer of commitment to Christ. I asked if anyone made the decision to follow Christ, to please let me know on their comment card. One lady stopped me on her way out the door, handed me her comment card and said, “Today was the day. Thank you for coming.” Though she had been a regular attendee at this group’s luncheon and heard numerous testimonies and invitations, that was the day she decided to surrender.
I’m still not an evangelist. I was only “fishing off the right side of my boat,” as Jesus, through my friend, invited me to do. I’m certain the Holy Spirit supernaturally charged what little evangelistic gifting He had given me and maneuvered me to be there that day just for that woman. Let me reiterate – it was not me but the Christ’s Holy Spirit working in and through me to bring her to follow Christ (1 Timothy 2:5).
Look again at today’s passage. Why did fishing off the right side of the boat rather than the left make any difference in the disciples hauling 153 fish compared to them catching nothing throughout the night? Matthew Henry’s commentary indicates that Judean fisherman typically fished off the left side of their boats so that they could depend on their dominant arm, usually the right one, to haul in their filled nets. Fishing off the right side of the boat meant they relied on their weaker left arm to pull the nets aboard.
The disciples’ failure to catch any fish until they followed Jesus’ directive reminds us that God will call us to do things outside our skillset that require dependence on His strength and help to accomplish. Trust and lean on Him. Likewise, God can and does make our weaker gifts [and talents] strong enough to accomplish any work to which He urges us at any time. It’s not us accomplishing the task but Him. That’s what makes them supernatural gifts.
Be Still and Reflect: How is God asking you to think differently about your calling and spiritual gifts? Is He inviting you to step outside of your comfort zone? To fish out of the right side of your boat using your weaker gifts? If so, will you do what he’s asking? Will you follow his directive?
Pray: Gracious and Merciful Father, Thank You for the precious gift of Your Holy Spirit, who works in mysterious and wondrous ways within me. Even when I feel ill-equipped or confused, increase my trust to allow Your Spirit and supernatural gifts to shine forth through me to accomplish Your will and glorify Your name. In Jesus’ precious name, I pray. Amen.
By His Grace,
Gloria Ashby
Lay Leader