Let Go & Let God

“When [Jesus] 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.’” Luke 5:4-5 (NIV)

In Luke 5, we read about Simon Peter admitting his failure to Jesus. He made his living as a professional fisherman. Imagine how hard it must have been for Peter to confess to Jesus, “We’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything”. Sometimes, even the professionals fish all night and catch nothing.

Life can feel like that? Sometimes your best isn’t good enough, and you face situations out of your control. You can’t control the economy, the weather, many things that affect your life. So what do you do when you keep trying hard but just don’t have much to show for it?

First, you need to let Jesus in your boat. Let him be the center of your career or whatever you do each day to provide, care, or serve. Once you’ve asked Jesus to come into your boat, you need to admit your way isn’t working and let him take over. The Bible has a name for “admitting your way isn’t working.” It’s called confession, and it can be tough.

Why is it so hard for you to admit your way isn’t working? Here are a few reasons:

Pride: You don’t want anybody to think you can’t handle it. Instead, you try to look like you have it all together. You want to be able to handle everything by yourself, even if it means working 16 hour days.

Stubbornness: You’re unwilling to change the way you do things.

Fear: You can’t admit you’ve fished all night and caught nothing. You’re afraid people will think less of you. You’re afraid to let Jesus into your boat because he might steer it in a direction you don’t want to go.

It’s time to confess your way isn’t working. Let go of your pride, stubbornness, and fear. Then see how Jesus can take your boat and fill your nets to overflowing.