Yesterday, we looked at Peter in Luke 5 and how Jesus told him to let down his net again after he had spent the entire night trying to catch fish without getting anything.
And I think the message was pretty simple – when God tells you to try again, try again.
Peter did not believe that the conditions were right. In fact, everything he knew about fishing told him that there was no point trying again but he still said “nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.”
And we know what happened next.
The Bible tells us that they caught so many fishes that their net began to break and they had to call another boat to come and help them.
But today, I want us to continue from where we stopped because something happens immediately after that miracle that I think is even more interesting than the miracle itself.
Peter leaves the fish.
Think about that for a moment.
This man had spent the entire night looking for fish. He had worked so hard that by the time Jesus met him, he had already given up for the day and was washing his nets.
Then Jesus tells him to try again and Peter suddenly gets probably one of the biggest catches he had seen in his career.
The Bible says in Luke 5:7:
And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them.
That means this was not just some small catch.
There were so many fishes that Peter’s boat alone could not carry them.
For someone whose livelihood depended on fishing, this was a very big deal.
If this happened today, you can imagine what Peter would have been thinking.
Business has finally changed.
Maybe I can buy another boat.
Maybe I can employ more people.
Maybe I can expand this fishing business.
Maybe this is finally the breakthrough that I have been waiting for all these years.
And none of those thoughts would have been wrong.
After all, Peter had worked for it.
But then Jesus says something to him in verse 10:
Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.
Basically, Jesus was saying Peter, I know you are looking at all these fishes right now but this is not actually what I called you for.
The fish was the miracle but the fish was not the purpose.
And I think this is something we sometimes struggle to understand when God finally gives us the things we have been praying for.
For a long time you prayed for the job.
Then you got the job and somehow the job became everything.
You prayed for your business to grow and when it finally started growing, you became so busy running the business that you no longer had time for the God you were praying to when nobody was buying from you.
You prayed for marriage and then marriage came and somehow your entire relationship with God started depending on whether things were going well in your marriage.
You prayed for admission.
You prayed for money.
You prayed for an opportunity.
You prayed for visibility.
You prayed for a breakthrough.
And God gives you the thing.
But there is a question I think we all have to ask ourselves sometimes.
What if the thing you have been praying for is not actually the destination?
What if it is just something God is using to take you somewhere else?
Because this was exactly what happened to Peter.
Jesus used fish to get the attention of a fisherman.
Peter understood fish.
Peter understood nets.
Peter understood boats.
So Jesus met him there.
But Jesus was never really interested in making Peter the most successful fisherman in Galilee.
He had something bigger for him.
And this is why I find Luke 5:11 very interesting.
The Bible says:
And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.
They left everything.
Including the fish.
The same fish they had spent all night trying to catch.
The same fish that was so much that their nets were breaking.
The same fish that required another boat to carry.
They brought everything to land and then walked away from it because now they had seen Jesus differently.
Yesterday Peter called Jesus Master.
After the miracle, something changed.
Peter suddenly understood that the man standing in his boat was more important than everything that had just entered his net.
And maybe that is the message for someone today.
Do not stop at the miracle.
Yes, thank God for the thing He gave you.
Enjoy it.
Celebrate it.
There is nothing wrong with being happy that God answered your prayer.
But do not become so focused on what entered your net that you forget who told you where to throw the net in the first place.
Because blessings can become distractions too.
Not because there is anything wrong with the blessing but because sometimes we become attached to what God gives us and stop paying attention to where He is leading us next.
And this is particularly difficult because when you have waited for something for a long time, you naturally want to hold on to it.
Peter had just spent all night without fish.
Now his boat was full.
It would have been understandable if he told Jesus “give me a few minutes, let me sort these fishes first.”
But there was something more important in front of him.
I think yesterday’s devotional was about obedience when there is nothing in your net.
Today’s is about obedience when your net is full.
Because sometimes it is easier to follow God when nothing is working.
When you have tried everything and nothing is happening, you know you need God.
But what happens when things finally begin to work?
What happens when the business starts making money?
What happens when you finally get the job?
What happens when your name starts opening doors?
What happens when the prayer has finally been answered?
Can God still tell you what to do?
Can He still redirect you?
Can He still ask you to leave something behind?
Can He still tell you that there is more?
Peter did not allow the miracle to become more important than the One who gave him the miracle.
And I think that is something worth carrying with us today.
Maybe yesterday God was telling you to let down your net again.
Today, maybe He is reminding you that even when the net becomes full, the story may not be over.
The answer to your prayer may be the beginning of what God wants to do and not the end of it.
So receive the blessing.
Thank Him for it.
But keep listening.
Because sometimes after God fills your net, His next instruction is the reason He filled it in the first place.