At the beginning of Luke 5, we read about when Jesus met the fishermen Simon Peter, James and John. Over the next few days, let’s take a look at what we can learn from their meeting. Lesson one: Invite Jesus into your boat. That should always be our starting point. Nothing has greater influence on us than whether or not we have Jesus Christ in our lives. By himself, Peter fished all night and caught nothing. But when he brought Jesus on board, he caught more fish than he had ever caught before. Jesus used His miracles to illustrate principles, and this incident teaches us what to do when we’ve failed, or when our best just isn’t good enough. For Peter, his boat represented his livelihood. It was his means of support and he was probably relying on it to be his provision for his future. It’s significant that Peter invited Jesus into one of the most important things in his life, and Jesus used it as a platform for ministry. We need to be willing to do what Peter did. And if we give Jesus access to all areas of our life, He’ll bless all of it. But if we only give Him part of it, He’ll bless just that one part. Having Jesus in our boat removes the fear of failure and reduces our worries about the results. When Peter made Jesus his fishing partner, the results were incredible. But don’t miss the sequence. First, Peter let Jesus use the boat for His purposes. Then Jesus blessed Peter’s boat and used it to take care of all Peter’s needs. Jesus said, ‘Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need’ (Matthew 6:33 NLT).

What Now?

Do you have any areas of your life that you don’t give Jesus access to? Today, try inviting Him into those areas, and ask Him to help you trust Him even more.