"Kept Intact?"

 "But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus." (John 21:4 KJV) 

  "Sing to the LORD, all you godly ones! Praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. When I was prosperous, I said, "Nothing can stop me now!" Your favor, O LORD, made me as secure as a mountain. Then you turned away from me, and I was shattered. I cried out to you, O LORD. I begged the Lord for mercy, saying, "What will you gain if I die, if I sink into the grave? Can my dust praise you? Can it tell of your faithfulness? Hear me, O LORD, and have mercy on me. Help me, O LORD."" (PSALM 30:4-10 NLT)

 The point is this: We do not stop trying! Yes, they fished all night, catching nothing; but when you give up, making it about what happened, instead of what might be, what good does that do? It does nothing at all! Sometimes we must have a pause, if you catch my meaning! It doesn't require much, but it does give us a chance to wait on the Lord, to follow Him more closely. 

 Yesterday two young girls showed up at my door, saying that they were giving out inspiration notes, and one of them handed me a note. It wasn't much, but it said enough: "Never quit trying." That was it, and as I finished reading it, I asked if this meant I was to give them some money. They said, "No, we are just giving them out; but we do accept tips." So, I gave them a few dollars and said, "Thank you, I needed the inspiration!" 

 Maybe it was the Lord's way of making me take a pause, if for no other reason, than to sit and listen to what He would have me to do. Because my mind was all over the place, thinking of ways to hold it all together, hiring people to do what I do; making this the point of building a large company again, as if it was something God might want me to do. 

 Anywho; this is primarily the point of where we are at, as the disciples are making themselves feel, if you will, like it might be time to get back in the game! However, there attempt to do so, turned into nothing, not even a single fish was caught, and then Jesus shows up! 

 As Matthew Henry says: "Christ's time of making himself known to his people is when they are most at a lost. When they think they have lost themselves, he will let them know that they have not lost him." It is the same way all the time, you lose what you count as dear, only to find that Christ is near! 

 To you that feel as though all is lost, there is really another way to look at it, because you still have Jesus! When all is stripped away, Jesus will seem closer and closer...

 "So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor." (James 4:7-10 NLT)