A few months ago a young friend of mine asked me when I was going to write another post on this blog. I shared with her I had a few drafts pending, but I had not completed any of them. She encouraged me to get back on task of writing as she enjoys reading this blog. Today, I have tried several times to complete a post and I find myself at a crossroads. I have all these thoughts and ideas as to what I can write about, but even today I find myself struggling to write. I always pray as I write so that I will capture what God wants me to write in these posts. Today, as I prayed, I told God I want to write and I want to finish this post.

As I uttered those words, the Holy Spirit reminded of the story of when Peter told the disciples he was going to fish and they decided to go with him. However, as they fished into the night they did not catch any fish. The scripture in John 21:4-6 in the NIV says: “Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He call out to them “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.” There is no doubt that Peter knew how to fish, but there are times we experience frustrations, disappointments and struggles which might hinder us from accomplishing our goals. Peter had just gone through a time where he had denied Jesus 3 times and saw Him crucified.

Prior to hearing Jesus’ voice Peter was probably ready to call it a day and go back out at a later time. Several times in recent months and even today, I have sat down in front of my computer only to walk away leaving the screen blank or with just a title and no accompanying sentences. I just could not get the words, sentences or paragraphs to flow onto the page. Just like Peter and the disciples, I was coming up with nothing. Today, after quite a few attempts I was led to go sit back down in front of the computer and write. Sometimes, we may feel like giving up or feel the time is not right to finish what we have started. I am thankful for those who want to read what I write and who encourage me along the way. More importantly, I am thankful for Jesus who has a way of saying “try again.” He told Peter to put the nets on the other side of the boat. Today, He told me to “go sit back down at the computer and write”. What is He telling you to start, to continue or to finish? I pray you hear Him say “try again”.

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Father, thank You for today. Thank You for giving us another chance. Thank You for Your encouragement and inspiration that flows to us. Father, it is because of You that even when we fail, even when we come up short, or even when we encounter blank pages in our lives, we can still move forward and try again. Father, it is because of You that we can do all things in Jesus who gives us strength. Father, we pray ears will be open to hear You say, try again. And as you called Peter and the disciples “friends’, we thank You for calling us Your friends. We thank You for being a friend so full of love and encouragement towards us. It is in Jesus’ precious name, we say amen!