Beauty MarksSample

Beauty in the Deep When I’m in Zambales (a province here in the Philippines), one of my favorite things to watch is a timeless tradition in a nearby fishing village. Nearly everyone in the community comes out to haul in the nets. They stand, in a line, facing towards the ocean, and hand over hand, pull in the fishing nets. Some stand in the shallows, and some stand waist-deep in a vicious undertow. Hauling the nets in is a long process, and it takes several hours and a dozen people. It is hard work. That’s what I think of whenever I read the passage about Peter and his empty nets. Imagine the amount of work it must have been for everyone, and how tired Peter and his men must have been at the end of the day, with nothing in their net. Then Jesus shows up and tells them to put out their nets again. A carpenter telling a seasoned fisherman how to ply their trade. But what a heart Peter had, huh? He just said “because you said so.” And so Simon Peter did, and when they did, “they filled both boats so full that they began to sink.” I’m just going to leave that there for a minute and let that sink. Let’s be the kind of women who put out into the deep end even if we don’t understand why God will ask us to do something we’ve already done and obviously didn’t yield results, even if we don’t see it, even if we’re so tired, and even if we thought we’ve tried everything already. Let’s be the kind of women who say, “because You said so, God, I’ll do it. I don’t understand, and You see my empty nets, but okay. Here we go.” Sometimes it’s all about the timing: put out into the deep when God said so, and only when He says so. And be ready for the fullness, “...so full that they began to sink.” Happy sinking day!