Courage Again

“Though you’ve tried before, though it seems failure is near, take courage again.”

Loren Thornburg

Oh how I often I find I am just like the children I have taught.  They try something once and decide that they can’t do it or that it doesn’t work for them.  From the outside looking in it is easy for me to recognize how ridiculous that sounds.  I explain to them that new things take time and practice, but it’s worth it.  Some may dare to risk falling short again and again in order to achieve their goal, while others are not willing to do so.  It is so hard to watch those who are not willing to risk when I know how worth the risk it is.  Yet, somehow even having seen this in them I do the exact same thing in my own life.  I fear the failure that history says is coming if I dare to find courage again to try yet another time.  The problem is without the courage to try again I could miss out on the very thing I’ve been longing to find.  Let’s take courage again though it seems failure is near.  It’s worth the risk.  

“Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.  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 5:4-5 NKJV

I can only imagine what Simon was thinking as Jesus called him to let down his net after he had spent all night without catching anything.  Simon had good reason to believe that there would be no result from another try.  He had spent all night fishing in that same sea and came up with nothing.  And yet, he was wrong.  Their nets became so full of fish that they couldn’t hold them.  Oh what he would have missed had he not trusted the word of the Lord.  Simon had courage to believe the word of the Lord over what he thought to be true.  He took the Lord at His word.  Because God said so he followed and because he followed he caught more than he could contain.  Let us not miss the provision the Lord wants to bring us for fear of risking again.  Nevertheless, may we take the Lord at His word, because He said so, in spite of how things may seem.  For at His word Simon found more than enough.