Morning Prayer Notes for Thursday, December 9, 2021

  1. “Morning Chapel Prayer Playlist

Jeannie …

So today, Father, we submit to your Word and goodness. I just sense in my spirit that what I’m about to share is a sober word, but it’s a word of good news. Even this morning, I woke up like with insane, ridiculous pain. And my first thought was, I can’t go. And the Holy Spirit said, “No, you’re going, they need to hear this.” And for me to be so bold to share that with you. I’m saying this with fear and trembling. But then when I decided, the pain left.

So, Father, right now, I thank you that you gave us the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit is in us. And I thank you that this word lands in the hearts of the people, whether you’re with us now or you hear it later, I thank you that it lands in me. I’m greedy. I just feel like a God glutton right now that I have to have what He’s about to share through the sound of my voice. I want us to get this. And I want to get this. I’m laying out on the floor right now in my heart, because I want to get this. So a couple of days ago, I was in the chapel and I was just talking to Him and I said, “Okay, so I’m leading on Thursday. What do you want me to share?” And it was just an immediate “whoosh.” And He wouldn’t change His mind. He just gave me one passage and that was it. Because every once in a while, you want more than one passage if you’re going to lead prayer.

So it’s from Luke 5. Depending on what He ends up doing, I’m probably gonna share from three different versions, but we’ll see what happens. So Luke 5 in the Amplified Classic, I’ll start at the beginning. “Now it occurred that while the people pressed upon Jesus to hear the message of God, He was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee). 2 And He saw two boats drawn up by the lake, but the fishermen had gone down from them and were washing their nets. 3 And getting into one of the boats, [the one] that belonged to Simon (Peter), He requested him to draw away a little from the shore. Then He sat down and continued to teach the crowd [of people] from the boat. 4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon (Peter), Put out into the deep [water], and lower your nets for a haul. 5 And Simon (Peter) answered, Master, we toiled all night [exhaustingly] and caught nothing [in our nets]. But on the ground of Your word, I will lower the nets [again]. 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish; and as their nets were [at the point of] breaking.” Harvest. 7 “They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and take hold with them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 9 For he was gripped with bewildering amazement [allied to terror], and all who were with him,” were also gripped with amazing, “at the hall of fish, which they had made. 10 And so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon (Peter). And Jesus said to Simon, Have no fear; from now on you will be catching men!”

Bill Johnson refers to that there’s a scripture, I think it’s in Haggai, that in the end of days, people will fear you because of the blessing on you. They will fear God because of His massive blessing. That’s what happened here. So I wrote down a few notes here, and then I’m going to read different versions.

When Jesus came on the scene, He noticed. Nothing gets by Jesus. He noticed that the nets were empty and He realized they’d been fishing all night. Jesus already knew what had been happening.

Also, Jesus was the one when He finished speaking… First off, when He started speaking, He took initiative to get in Peter’s boat. He took initiative. I mean, think about this. He gets on the scene, and it occurs to Him, “Wow. Those guys have been fishing all night and they didn’t catch anything. There’s this crowd. I’ve got something I have to do. But the second I’m done, I’m going to talk with Peter.” And He asked to get in Peter’s boat. Peter was just offering his boat to Jesus because He asked. But Jesus had increased breakthrough and harvest on His mind for Peter.

And then when Peter said “Master, it didn’t work. What you’re telling me to do didn’t work last night, but I’ll do it anyway.” You know, I feel like a lot of times we kind of chide Peter for his response… but takes massive faith to do once again what you did the night before, and it didn’t work. And on top of that, you’re exhausted. And he did it. He did it anyway. And, you know, sometimes it takes massive faith for us to be willing to have an honest conversation with Jesus. And Peter did. He had an honest conversation with Jesus.

Did Jesus require a perfect response from Peter for Him to follow through with what He said what was going to happen? No, He didn’t at all. Because He knew Peter’s heart. He knew what he had just endured. He knew. But see Jesus wouldn’t change his mind because he saw what the Father was up to. You know, the second He saw those nets empty, the Father said “They’re exhausted. When you’re done teaching, I’m gonna cause a massive harvest. Just tell him to go back out.” Jesus knew his heart. He knew what was about to happen.

I thank you right now, Holy Spirit, that you are ministering to people. Right now. And anyone that hears this, they are being ministered in a life-changing forever way because the end of the story is they end up being fishers of men. It’s His goodness that led them to repentance. Sometimes we experience God’s goodness with an encounter. We experience God’s goodness through a word. Sometimes we experience God’s goodness with a result. Are we longing for results? Jesus has results on His mind, and He’s in your boat. He initiated getting in Peter’s boat. Peter didn’t say, “Jesus, get in here.” Jesus initiated it. He brought up the subject of increase. And even though Peter was exhausted, he had a real conversation with Jesus because they had a relationship.

I was telling someone the other day that I’ve been kind of having a colossal fit about a few things. And in my heart, I had turned away from God a little bit. And the only way I could get close to Him again was to have my fit with Jesus. And God said, “Finally, we’re talking again. Thank you for sharing.” And I said, “Why didn’t I do it sooner?” And He said, “You will next time.”

You know, with everything that’s happening right now, we will not… I’m declaring this over all of us, and I’m declaring it over the church in every country, in every city, in every county, in every school… We will not stop the conversation with Him. He already knows. He’s already been to that place of prayer in a scene that the nets are empty. He’s in your boat. Just talk to Him. I’ve done this. You’ve done this. We’ve all done this. For Jesus says, Go back and do what you just did, but now do it out of relationship. That’s what Peter did.

And we’ve all done this where we say nothing and just walk away and get out of the boat. But Jesus is still in your boat. He’s still there. And He’s not going to change His mind. All He’s saying is go back and do what I told you to do, because when you are talking again, He will tell you to do what He told you to do 10,000 times before.

But He’ll say “This time, do it through relationship.” And you know, Peter’s response was perfect. I don’t think Peter ever cared about being perfect. Thank God! I’m a lot like Peter.

Aren’t we glad He knows and understands that there are areas where the nets are empty. There are other areas where the fish are just about to jump in in a massive way. And then we’re led to repentance because, “Oh God, I can’t handle the blessing. I can’t even handle it.” And God says, “Don’t be afraid. I have a plan.”

You’ll notice too, as I read from other versions, that when all the fish came in, Jesus didn’t leave Peter without other people to help him bring it in. And other people were also astonished. The Church truly is coming together. She’s coming to a place of unity, and it doesn’t matter that she was exhausted last night. It doesn’t matter! If your exhaustion doesn’t matter to Him, then it doesn’t have to matter to us. Your exhaustion doesn’t move Him a bit. The only thing that moves Him is the Father’s heart toward you. And the Father’s heart is harvest, increase, provision. Church, we’re getting this done and we’re doing it out of relationship.

You’ll notice that Peter and his crew were out there the night before and nothing happened. I’ve been there so many times. Have you? Just admit it and talk to Him about it. Because if you tell me no, you’re lying to yourself and to God.

I’ve also been there when I’ve done things out of relationship and there’s a supernatural ease to it. And joy and harvest. And He doesn’t require a perfect response. And He’s in your boat right now. He’s in your boat.

Let’s read it from the Passion.

“On one occasion, Jesus was preaching to the crowds on the shore of lake Galilee. There was a vast multitude to hear the word of God.” Now isn’t that amazing that Jesus approached the shore of Galilee and there was a vast multitude. So here’s this crowd wanting to hear from Jesus and pulling on Jesus. Yet, what does he notice? He notices that Peter and his men fished all night. Who does that? Only our God. He’s not distracted by everything that’s the crowd polling on Him. He’s thinking about and has His mind on what’s been happening with you?

There was a vast multitude of people pushing. They were pushing to get close to Jesus to hear the word of God. He noticed in the middle of the vast multitude pulling on Him, He notices. That’s where the Church is headed too. That in the middle of the vastness of everything that’s happening, we notice Jesus. We notice what He’s up to and we partner and co-labor with what He has to say and what He’s up to.

He noticed two fishing boats at the water’s edge with the fishermen nearby, rinsing their nets. Jesus climbed into the boat. Jesus did it. Belonging to Simon Peter, and asked him, “let me use your boat. Push it off a short distance away from the shore so I can speak to the crowds.” Okay, so this whole time, Jesus knows what He’s going to do after He’s finished speaking to the crowds. Peter doesn’t. I mean, I don’t know. You’ve got to wonder what Peter is thinking. I would have probably been thinking, “Oh, I can’t wait till He’s done. I just want to go to bed.”

Have we done that? I don’t know when we’re gonna finally see everything we’ve been believing for it. I just want to go to bed. That doesn’t deter Jesus at all. Not at all! Jesus sat down and taught the people from the boat and when He had finished. I love this. I can just see this. When He had finished, Peter’s thinking, “Oh, He’s done. “And here’s Jesus talking. He turns to Peter and He says… He doesn’t waste any time. Does he go out and pray for people? It doesn’t do any of that. He immediately brings it up to Peter. Now, row out to the deep water to cast your nets and you will have a great catch. You know, it’s interesting. We always talk about, go out into the deep to be intimate with Jesus. Well, Peter had been out into the deep the night before and it didn’t do anything, but this time it was from relationship. Even though he was exhausted. Even though he might’ve thought it was a dumb idea. He did it because he knew Jesus, and he did it out of relationship.

So stop trying to be perfect before you start doing what God tells you to do. Just stop. And I love how Peter calls Him master. Meaning, Peter wants him to know, “I know you’re the boss, but I have to tell you what’s on my heart.”

Master, Peter replied, We’ve just come back from fishing all night and didn’t catch a thing. Hello! But if you insist, I’ll go out again and let down the nets because of your word. Yesterday, Ken was praying about quick obedience. You know, Peter did that, even though he was exhausted, he just went right back out there. He might’ve been crabby about it, but he went back out there. Your response doesn’t have to be perfect.

When they pulled up their nets, they were shocked to see a huge catch of fish. Now isn’t that funny? They were shocked, even though Jesus said what was going to happen. But Jesus didn’t allow that to keep it from happening. You know, your expectation isn’t high enough. So now I’m not going to keep My word. That didn’t happen, did it? No. Just step out. Just do what He says. Keep the relationship intact. Keep the conversation going.

They were shocked to see a huge catch of fish so much that their nets were ready to burst. That is what is upon us. So we can be happy about exhaustion. We can be massively encouraged. They waived to their business partners in the other boat for help. And they were there for help. Jesus knew that too. They ended up completely filling both boats with fish until their boats began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this astonishing miracle, he knelt at Jesus’ feet and begged Him, “Go away from me, master, for I am a sinful man.” Simon Peter and the other fishermen, including his fishing partners, Jacob and John and the sons of Zebedee we’re awestruck over the miracle catch of fish.

So here’s the deal. When you do what He says out of relationship, the result gets noticed and other people see it and other people are available to help and get involved and engaged. In fact, it’s a requirement of the harvest. But I love what Jesus said. “Do not yield to your fear. From now on, you will catch men for salvation.” You know, Peter still fished after that. There were times he did, but now out of relationship, it impacts the world. And isn’t this hilarious. I’m pretty sure that he didn’t really care about taking a nap after this. After pulling their boats to the shore, they left everything behind and followed Jesus. Did it save the exhaustion, even affected them any longer? It didn’t say that because it didn’t. They let it go. And they followed Him.

… talks about how God has factored in failure. And you know, this is a perfect example, how God factors in failure in our walk with Him. Why does He do that? Because it doesn’t even move Him. It doesn’t even occur to Him. He doesn’t see you that way. He sees you responding to Him. He sees you out of intimacy. He sees you moving in the right direction of His voice and all Jesus can see is harvest. That’s all He can see.

You know, Jesus, didn’t try and comfort Peter and say, “Yeah, I noticed you’ve been fishing all night. Just go out there anyway. I know you’re tired.” It doesn’t occur to Jesus. He’ll minister that exhaustion out of you, but that’s not the main thing for Him.

So, Father, we repent right now for tiredness, for exhaustion, for hope deferred being the main thing. And we trust you to minister it out of us. We trust you right now that immediate harvest is upon our city, our state, our churches, our countries across the world, immediate harvest. That brings us to repentance. That causes us to change our thinking. That causes us to line our thinking up with you, because really to walk in this harvest, that’s the only way we’re going to walk in this harvest is to have our thinking lined up with Him. That’s good news. There’s so much good news.

Let’s read the passage in the Message. But before I do that, look for a few things. Doing the same thing out of relationship. So doing the same thing that God told you to do out of relationship, did Jesus require a perfect response. It was relational for Peter to be honest with Jesus. Do not let religion tell you that you can’t be honest with Jesus. Isn’t that how you came to accept Him in the first place was honesty? Even though they were shocked at the result, it still happened. It absolutely still happened. So even though they weren’t really expecting what Jesus said to happen, it didn’t move Jesus. Peter was experiencing hope deferred. It didn’t move Jesus. Jesus used Peter’s boat. Jesus is wanting to use your boat. He’s already in the boat. You’re just a conversation away. Jesus brought up solutions in the middle of exhaustion. Not kind of, sorta solutions. Glory solutions. Presence solutions. Like the kind of manifestation that makes you get on your knees solutions. He saw the empty nets before He started teaching and the crowd pressing in on Him didn’t deter Him from the solution to those empty nets. That’s how much He knows you. That’s how much His increase on His mind. The goodness of God led Peter and others to repentance. See it wasn’t just Peter. It was all those around him. And the manifestation of His goodness put a demand on them being engaged. Like they saw this… We have to help. We have to engage. We have to get involved. Look what’s happening. That is what is upon the earth. The Church engaged in the kingdom of God manifesting here on the earth. She’s compelled, even though just the night before she was exhausted, literally they were astonished.

You know, I would like to get to a place from not astonished anymore when His Word comes to pass. However, my comfort is that even though they were astonished, it didn’t deter Him at all. He didn’t penalize them for not having enough faith. In fact, what it did do is it changed their hearts. It changed the way they walked. It changed everything. Their attitude of exhaustion and this isn’t working completely shifted to the kingdom, to the hearts of men, to becoming the influencers and the world changers that God saw. And that is what is upon us.

They continue to lean in and change the world. And isn’t it amazing that it started from exhaustion and an honest conversation initiated by Jesus? Come on. Just an honest conversation with Jesus will get you there. I’m so glad when I think about who He is and how awesome He is. I mean, He really is not at all a hard taskmaster. So if you’re tired, it’s not because Jesus is withholding. Maybe you just need to talk to Him about it and it doesn’t have to be pretty. It might not be, and it might not be several times. But I’ll tell you the more you lean into Him, the more you keep the conversation going, it’s been my experience and it’s in the Word. He will get you back to the place of faith. He will get you back to trust. It could just take more faith than it’s ever taken you just to talk to Him. Faith to not be perfect when you approach His throne boldly. It says we go to Him boldly.

Jesus was in his boat already. It was Jesus’ idea to get in his boat, and it was Jesus’ idea for him to receive increase and not just increase, but massive increase, and not just massive increase that only Peter could handle. Massive increase that acquired engagement.

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