Don't Want To Miss A Thing

It had been a long, frustrating night.  Bone weary and preoccupied Simon hefted the heavy nets out of the boat to wash them.  All the people were already standing around waiting for that new teacher.  He really drew the crowds.  People made a lot of noise about him, saying he healed people and cast out demons.  Some even whispered he might be the Messiah.  At that moment it didn't matter who he was, Simon just needed a catch.  Sore and weary, he just tried to get through the routine and get home.

Lost in his thoughts he didn't hear anyone approach, but catching his name, he turned and found himself face to face with Jesus.  The people were all pressing around Jesus, all wanted a touch or a word, some miracle to cling to.  Jesus stepped into the boat and asked Simon to push out from the shore.  Exhausted, hungry and a little irritated, Simon climbs in and pushes away from shore.  Jesus sits down in the boat and starts to speak to the crowds.  Amazingly, his voice carries and the power and authority radiate from him.  His message is so different from what Simon had ever heard before.

As Jesus spoke to the crowds, Simon begins to relax and feel the weight lifting off his shoulders, he's not sure what it is about this guy, but he's different.  After a while, Jesus finishes teaching.  Simon is just about to head back to shore when Jesus says, "Go out to the deep water and let your nets down."  Inwardly, Simon groans, thinking to himself, "Jesus, stick to teaching."

Simon is a fisherman and he knows a couple things...  You can't catch fish in the deep and especially not at this time of day.  He has great respect for this guy, but obviously Jesus doesn't know a thing about fishing.  Feeling the need to explain this to Jesus, Simons says, "Master, we've worked all night long and caught nothing.  But if you say so, I'll let down the nets."

Unfolding the nets, Simon swings them out into the water and before they even sink below the surface, fish begin to throw themselves in his nets.  Simon stands in open-mouthed shock as his eyes take in what his mind can't understand.  He is so dumb-founded that Jesus has to remind him to pull the nets in, but as they pull them up and try to heft them into the boat the nets begin to tear.  With his brain still befuddled, he motions for his partners in the other boat to come get all the fish in the boats.  Simon looks over at Jesus, who is helping pull the nets out of the water and he's laughing, acting like he's having a great time.

Simon and the others just keep pulling fish into the boat, which is becoming overloaded.  He has never seen anything like this.  The boat begins to sink, as the weight of the fish becomes too much to bear.  Again Simon looks over at Jesus, looking like he's having the time of his life and Simon becomes very afraid.  His mind is beginning to understand the true gravity of this situation.  He is witnessing a miracle.  He's standing in the presence of the one who made those fish.  He's standing in the presence of the One.  Simon falls to his knees and cries out, "Go away from me, because I'm a sinful man, LORD."

Jesus turns serious, all traces of humor gone, and says, "Don't be afraid, from now on you will be catching people."

Although, Simon didn't understand what that meant, he knew that he could no longer go back to life, as it had been.  He didn't know anything, except that he would follow Jesus anywhere.  That day Simon left everything on that shore and followed Jesus.

Simon, who became Peter, followed Jesus from that day forward.  Peter became the Messiah's right hand man.  Peter saw Jesus walk on water, and even got to take a few steps himself.  Peter saw Jesus break bread and blessing it to feed thousands.  Peter saw people healed, his own mother inlaw included.  Peter saw Jesus raise the dead, give sight to the blind, calm storms and he was a eye-witness to the beautiful sermons, to words spoken that changed lives, and set captives free.

Peter witnessed the transfiguration and he also witnessed the cross, where his dearest friend and beloved Lord and Savior was brutally beaten and nailed to wood posts and left to die. He witnessed that same Jesus raised to life again and ascending into heaven.  He was told to go and preach the Gospel and make disciples.  He was thrown in jail for fulfilling his calling.  He saw and performed miracles.  He suffered for the message and eventually, church tradition says that he was hung upside down on a cross of his own...

But, I know that Peter wouldn't have changed a thing.  He wouldn't want to miss all that he saw and experienced.  From the first day, when he fell down in from of Jesus and worshipped him, he wouldn't have missed a thing.

And I don't want to miss a thing.  I want to follow Jesus, wherever he leads.  I want to walk on water with him.  I don't want fear or common sense to keep me from seeing miracles.  I want to recklessly follow the One who lavishly loves me.  How about you...  don't you want to follow Him too?