THE PROMISE

John 21:1-6

John 14:1-6
    "Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these."


Old Pete was an avid fisherman, drawing on the accumulated wisdom and knowledge of four generations of Olafson men, several of whom were buried with their fishing poles.  Using tried and true (and sometimes secret) methods that had been passed down from father to son, he rarely returned home without having caught his limit.

That winter, though, Pete hadn't even had a nibble.  One particularly disappointing day out on the ice, Pete noticed that young Josh was having pretty good luck.  Walking over to where the boy was fishing, Pete asked, "Hey, Josh, what's your secret?" 

The boy mumbled something.  Drawing closer, Old Pete said, "Sorry there, I couldn't understand you. Can you speak up?"

Louder, Josh mumbled something.  Exasperated, Pete shouted at him, "Blast it, boy.  I'm an old man and hard of hearing.  Speak up!  What is your secret for catching all those fish?"

The boy cupped his hand, spit something into it, looked up at Old Pete and said, "Keep your worms warm."

Sometimes the thought of changing can be as unpalatable as a mouthful of worms, even when it's Jesus calling us to that change.

Over the last few weeks, we've learned a few things about traveling through change to a "new normal" in our lives.  Sometimes that change is unexpected or unwanted.  Sometimes it's change for the better, and even then we find ourselves grieving what we've given up.

We've learned that no matter what the reason for change is, God is right there with us.  Not does he say, "I am here," but he is also actively at work for our good, bringing new life, hope and joy while we are going through the change.

The process we go through can be described as recovering from change, so like any recovery or rehabilitation, it's important to have a program or strategy to move us closer to our "new normalp."  A three step program we can follow is to intentionally work at our relationship with God, stay connected to our faith community, and, while it is important to be transparent about our feelings of grief, equally important is to celebrate every day that's better than the day before, every God sighting.

Every recovery has a goal, and every journey through a wilderness leads to a promised land.  It's the reason why the journey is being taken, the hope that gives us the strength and courage to endure and persevere.  As our church moves forward into God's future for us and through the changes we have to make, I feel that our promise can be found in John 14:12:  "Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these."

After Jesus' death and resurrection, he instructed the disciples to go back to Galilee and wait for him there.  Waking early in the morning, Peter stretched, looked out across the Sea of Galilee where He had, like generations of his family, had made a living by fishing it's waters, and perhaps remembered the day Jesus boarded his boat and took him and the crew on a fishing trip.  He'd never seen such a catch -- it took two boats to bring all the fish in.  Then, Jesus called Peter and the other fishermen to follow him and become fishers of men.

"I'm going fishing," he announced to the other disciples.  It must have sounded like a good idea, because they all trooped down to the water to join Peter.

Unfortunately, like Old Pete, the morning's fishing wasn't going well.  Time and time again, they cast out their nets, hauled them in and found them empty, until Jesus appeared on the shore and said, "Cast your nets on the right side of the boat."

Now, at this point in the story, I'm thinking, "why is the right side of the boat better than the left side of the boat?"  And then it hit me.  It's isn't an issue of right and left; it's an issue of right and wrong! 

Unlike the first time, Jesus wasn't in the boat with him, and it wasn't until they let Jesus take the lead by following his instructions that they were successful.  Before, they were doing it the wrong way, trying to do it all on their own and putting their faith in their own abilities, like they had always done before Jesus came into their lives.

In the promise of John 14:12, there is a condition:  the one who believes in me.  The one who has the kind of faith in Christ that results in trust and obedience, will do all that Jesus did and more.  We need to not only put our faith in the promise but also put our faith in the one who makes it.

The secret of being a successful, thriving and fruitful church is a life-transforming force in Fort Madison and the world is not a mouthful of live worms.  It's making sure we always have Jesus in the boat with us.