Friday, Feb. 11th Update from Joni

Friday, Feb. 11th Update from Joni:

The night before last, I was emotionally-crumbling from the day’s pain, and so I quick called my fellow quad, Vicky Olivas. Ours is a wonderful “I help you when you’re weak, and you help me when you’re strong” friendship. Vicky’s incredible Christian character has been stretched and strengthened through adversity (watch her episode on our TV page or visit her blog at http://vickyo55.blogspot.com/). Earlier this week, she was the one who had called me, worn-out, weary, and just plain tired of her disability. So when I telephoned her the other night, I knew I’d find an empathetic ear – together we were able to coax ironfisted faith out of our feeble hearts and point each other to the Word….

And there’s no better pick-me-up for weary hearts than Luke 5. Simon Peter had been fishing all night with not a sardine to show for it, so Jesus got into the boat and told him to let down his nets one more time. You can almost hear the weariness in Peter’s response: “‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and I haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break… When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees.'” Now there’s a story that’ll lift your spirits. Simon, too, was weary. Yet at the command of Christ, He was able to summon what little energy He had to let down his net. One more time. And just look what happened.

It’s the same with Vicky and me. It’s the same for you. Remember that, on your driest, most weary day, God is actively engaged moment-by-moment, working behind the scenes, shifting hearts, pushing souls and prodding unwilling spirits. He’s laboring intentionally with a clear goal in mind for your life, your family and friends. And He is asking you today to let down your net. One more time. Because sooner or later, He’ll surprise you just like He surprised Simon Peter. Just like He surprised me today with a pain-free day! He’s going to bring you out of that long night. You’re going to experience His joy… more joy than you can handle. So be faithful, friend, and trust Him. Jesus can still fill an empty net.