Unexpected Opportunities

In Luke chapter 5, is the story of how Simon Peter met Jesus. Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, teaching, and a crowd was pressing in around him. He got into Simon's boat and asked him to go out into the lake, where he sat down and spoke to the people from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said, "Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch." Simon told him he had been fishing all night and hadn't caught anything, but he would do as Jesus said. After letting the net down, he pulled up so many fish the net began to break, and he had to call his partners to help.

I've read this story many times, and there is a lesson in it which is familiar to me. Namely, sometimes we work and strive to achieve our goals, seemingly with no success. Then, Jesus shows up on the scene, and suddenly, when we obey what he says, our goals are achieved, and our lives are changed in a moment. That's a pretty standard interpretation from the teachings I have encountered.

However, as I read this story recently, another thought occurred to me. When Simon and his companions were seized with amazement over what had transpired, Jesus said, "Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men." Then, in verse 11, we read when they brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

If Simon had been asked before he went fishing what his goal was, he might have said to catch enough fish to pay the bills, and afterward, he was likely disappointed and disheartened when his long hours of work were unfruitful. Then, he caught more fish than he could have imagined, but just as suddenly as that success came to him, he had a new realization. As important as the fish were to his livelihood, he sensed there was something even more valuable, more intriguing, in the words Jesus said, and he was willing to leave the comfort of familiar work behind to discover what this new challenge might mean.

As we achieve one goal, another goal will present itself. We should always be open to opportunities in unexpected places because sometimes, what we think we want is not what we truly want, or need, at all.