Prayer For The Will Of God

But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” – Luke 5:5

I encourage you to join us as a church to pray and intercede to realign ourselves with God’s purposes and call for the rest of the year. It is very possible to get discouraged half way through something, even if you are in the will of God for your life. If you feel lost, defeated, disappointed, foggy, confused, distracted, it’s time to renew, recalibrate, recommit, reset, and rise again. If you have been waiting for a sign, this is your sign, it is time to seek God!

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Life Without Jesus

Life without Jesus can be summarized by Peter’s statement, “We have toiled all night and caught nothing.” Jesus was not part of their life and a life without Jesus is a life of striving, struggle and sin. A life without Jesus is a life of catching nothing. You have the God-shaped hole in your life that you are craving to have filled but never can without God.

This is how the Bible describes life without Jesus:

• Spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1)
• Separate from God (Ephesians 4:18)
• Under God’s wrath (John 3:36)
• Living in darkness (John 8:12)
• Slave to sin (John 8:34)
• Condemned (John 3:18)
• Blinded by the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4)
• Without hope and God (Ephesians 2:12)

When Adam sinned, he hid from God. Humanity still does that. That’s why we don’t want to pray or spend time with God – there is sin in our lives that separates us from Him. No amount of good works can help with a sin problem; the only thing that can solve a sin problem is a Savior – Jesus Christ.

Life without Jesus is spending eternity in hell and having hell on earth before that. Don’t believe the lies of the culture; when you are separated from God, you are dead.

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Life In Jesus

Life in Jesus is a life of rest, grace, and acceptance. Before you can do things in God, you must learn who you are in Him. Otherwise, you will fall back to legalism and the frustration of never being enough.

This is what life in Jesus is like:

• New creation (1 Corinthians 5:17)
• Indwelled by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9)
• Justified (Romans 5:1)
• Righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21)
• Redeemed (Ephesians 1:7)
• Seated in a heavenly place (Ephesians 2:6)
• Part of the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27)
• Citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20)
• Victorious (1 John 5:4-5)

When you become a Christian, Jesus Christ comes to live inside you and something happens in your spirit – you become a child of God. If you don’t understand this revelation, prayer will be a chore, discipline, and a burden. You don’t pray so God can love you; you pray because He loves you. In order to passionately pursue God, you must understand that your position in His heart will always stay the same. You are God’s child. In John 15:20, God declares, you didn’t choose Him; He chose you.

We don’t change by trying, we change by growing. Growing people change. You cannot change if you are trying to change; you can change if you are trying to grow but you cannot grow unless you have an environment in which you are fully, unconditionally accepted. That environment is in the arms of the Heavenly Father. God enjoys your company and He loves you.

This is why in life, we don’t fight for victory, we fight from victory. We don’t do right things to be righteous, we are righteous so we can do the right thing.

Never leave Jesus for the fish, but sometimes, you will need to leave fish for Jesus. Share on X

Life With Jesus

“When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” Luke 5:4

Nothing you can do can make God love you more than He already does. Knowing God loves you isn’t a license to sin; it is the power to live a holy life.

Don’t stay where you started. As much as Christianity is about the unconditional love of God, it is also about continuous growth in God. It is unhealthy to stay the same for years, you need to grow in all areas of life.

Consecration is preparation.

“Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” – 2 Timothy 2:22

The problem with growth is many people think that it happens in a vacuum. You cannot grow or go deep in a vacuum. Where many of us hit stagnation in our growth is this: we get fired up but our friends are slowing us down. The goal is not just to say no to sin but yes to righteousness. If you only say no, you will still go back to it unless you say yes to something greater, which is God! When you say yes to God, you are empowered to say no to sin forever.

Going deep involves: 

1. Flee (What are you running from?)
2. Pursue (Who are you running after?)
3. With those (Who are you running with?)

Your friends are either going to pull you closer to Jesus or pull you further from Jesus. Who are you running your Christian race with?

Life Because of Jesus

“And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.” Luke 5:6

The Lord wants to bring a miracle into your net – your family, finances, health, marriage, and career. Going deep without a net doesn’t bring a miracle catch. If you want to have a catch, you need to have a net. If you have no net, it is not that God won’t send fish, but they will never be in your boat. What is a net? It is something you already have been given by God.

We say, God, I need a miracle, God says, I need your net. God blesses the work of your hands, not your wishes and fantasies. Dreams are great but give God something to bless, touch, and breathe on.

Life For Jesus

“So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him”. – Luke 5:11

Never leave Jesus for a fish but sometimes, you might have to leave fish for Jesus. A real breakthrough is one that brings you closer to Jesus, not further from Him.

A miracle is a means to an end. The end is the purpose of God. The miracle here was an invitation to pull them into something greater, not to bless their fishing business. The blessing of God is a springboard for His purpose. Our marriage is not the mission, it is on a mission. That mission is to fulfill the will of God. Have you done what God asked you to do? Sometimes, we use our gifts for our own pleasure, glory, fame, and comfort. In itself it is not wrong but let us store treasure for eternity and be rich in good works.

The greatest fulfillment in life comes not from a miracle catch but in following the Miracle Maker where He leads. This story does not end with Peter just having a bigger business but a greater life. May we live for God’s purpose, in Jesus’ name.

Watch The Full Sermon Here: