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Rejoice With Thanksgiving

November 22, 2019

And He [Jesus] got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s [Peter’s], and … He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.” When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break. Luke 5:3-6

1. TURNAROUND. The night Simon Peter caught zero fish turned into the day he met Jesus (and filled his boats to overflowing). We can all relate to times of disappointment when we’ve pulled up empty nets. Yet, God is looking for people in the midst of their disappointment to respond to Him in obedience like Peter: “I will do as You say.”

2. THANKFULNESS. When you feel like complaining, thank God for whatever you can possibly thank Him for. It’s easy to rejoice when our emotions are solid, when people are kind to us, when we’ve had a couple of breakthroughs and doors are open to us. But the Apostle Paul talks about rejoicing in both high times and hard times (Philippians 4:4-13).

3. TRUST. We don’t have it all figured out, but God does, and He can be trusted. When you get around Jesus, things change. When you obey Jesus, things work out. You can trust Him with your whole life.

God bless you,
Pastor Jeff Perry

Help your heart to rejoice by speaking these scriptures out loud:
I give thanks to the Lord with all my heart. I sing praise to Your name, O Most High (Psalm 9:1-2). I cried to You for help, and You healed me (Psalm 30:2). I will not die, but live, and tell of the works of the Lord (Psalm 118:17). Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5). The Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations. (Psalm 100:5).

thank•ful adj.
Grateful; impressed with a sense of kindness received, and ready to acknowledge it.

Copyright © 2019 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. “Thankful.” webstersdictionary1828.com. Web. 18 Nov. 2019.