John 21:1-3
Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
“I’m going fishing.”
Those were Peter’s words spoken sometime between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven. Why do you suppose Peter decided to go fishing? And why do you suppose six of the other disciples said, “We’re going with you.” I have a suspicion that they were getting bored. It was the same routine each day. The routine of just sitting there and waiting for Jesus’ next instructions was getting pretty long. Peter wanted action, and he simply could not stand just sitting around without an agenda to motivate him.
We are emotional people! We think and we feel. Often emotional thoughts are stronger than rational thoughts. Our emotions are never stable. Sometimes they are high, and other times they are low depending upon what is happening in our lives.
About a month ago, I was lying on the couch and saying, “I’m bored.” I was feeling sorry and hurtful for myself about everything. Life’s routine was affecting my job, thoughts about the church, friends you name it. There was nothing to do, it seemed and no one to entertain me. There was a workout to be done, a house to be cleaned; I could read, I could write down my thoughts or do whatever came to mind, I could do it but I was not motivated, I was having a pity party day. I had become excessively self-focused and that’s when I thought this was a warning sign from God that there was a “disease” in my heart that must be faced. Grow up! You’re not supposed to like your job every day. Perfect church, it doesn’t exist because it is made up of people. It’s not supposed to be fun all the time. That’s why they call it work. If work was supposed to be fun all the time, most places would be spelled F-U-N. Many days you won’t feel like going or being, and if you do, you won’t enjoy it. Big deal. Go anyway. Do what you have to do. And do it with all your heart. Put your passion into your existence your spirituality and see what happens.
A wise man once said, “All of life’s occurrences are to be either enjoyed or learned from.” This is a different perspective from the one we usually hold. We have been conditioned to believe that life is a combination of good and bad and that the price we pay for the good is the bad. Yet there is another way of looking at our life. During the boring times of life, God is working to instill His character in us; with that in mind boredom maybe our opportunity to experience the presence of the Lord.” And yet, it is so hard for some of us to be quiet and listen to what God’s plan is for us.
The hurts and sorrows that we as Christians feel in life are not punishments from our Creator; to me they are messages given to us by a loving God, who is showing us exactly what we need to change in order to grow. As with Peter we must learn the importance’s of quiet time. It is a gift from God. It was in one of those quiet times that God took Peter a step further in his understanding of God’s Kingdom by showing him that Christ had died for all. I used to think that boredom was my enemy but it is a friend. It is the driving force that pushes us out of our comfortable nest and forces us to learn to fly on our own. When times are darkest, we develop the fortitude to rally again and win if we understand the true nature of adversity and life’s challenges. Without it our growth is slow; with it we are transformed from fledglings into masters and that’s when we get those aha moments.
Who can lift you in those times of boredom? Jesus can, but first you have to know him. Do you? Is He yours? Empowered by the Holy Spirit, do you receive Him anew every day? Then He has a mission for you that will erase all boredom. Martin Luther said,” a man should live with the day of his death placarded before his eyes”. Luther managed to turn the world upside down. Life with the Lord taught Peter an important lesson. Nothing happens of importance in the life of a Christian unless there is a regular quiet time with the Lord. He will lead and guide us as to what His will is for our lives.
It is in this routine time of life with the Lord, that you meet your greatest challenges, and when the challenge comes from the Lord, life is no longer boring.
God Bless You and This Ministry!
