Into the Deep Water by Annie Ngai & Wong Cheuk Kin
Luke 5:4
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out the boat into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
In the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Luke, there is a record of a very dramatic encounter between Jesus and Simon Peter. When a group of fishermen worked hard all night to fish, but they failed to catch anything, they were already washing their nets and seemed to be preparing to dry them. When I was dry, I beg you to call it a day and go home, Jesus got into Simon’s boat and spoke to the people. After speaking, he said to Simon, “Put the boat into deep water and let down your nets to catch the fish. Simon said : Master, we toiled all night and caught nothing. But obey Your words, and I will let down the net.” As a result, a wonderful experience beyond Simon and his companions’ expectations unfolded before their eyes…
If you were Simon Peter, how would you react? How do you know or understand Jesus?
During spiritual practice, after reading the above scriptures and asking questions, I really wanted to use the painting “Harmony Pastel” to express the artistic conception of sailing the boat to the depth of the water, so I created this painting and recalled the following testimonial experience
Similar experience to peter
Experiences like this really happened in my professional life. When I first came out to work, I have been doing clerical work for many years. Later, I also worked in a bank with a stable income. I live in Anshu District. I thought that I might have been working in this Anshu District until I retired, until one day God sent me a message. The voice of invitation: “Son, are you willing to serve me?” Thank God for giving me the confidence to respond and say, “Obey Your word, I am willing, please send me.
In the process of sailing the boat to the depths of the water, it is very necessary to overcome the old self and the shallow view of the ego. Looking back at that time, I was about to leave the comfort zone of my habits, switch to a church job, and start all over again. The past is vivid in my mind, except for the need to adapt to the new environment, as well as the reduction of labor, the adjustment and renewal of the work in the service. But I obeyed the Lord and saw the work of God.
Thank God, He is the God who promised to be with me, giving me hope, comfort and encouragement. The experience at that time was similar to the encounter between Simon Peter and Jesus. When they obeyed Jesus’ words, they caught many fish. Peter’s immediate response to Jesus was to admit that he was a sinner and follow Jesus. I also felt the same way as Peter. If I hadn’t obeyed the Lord’s words at the time and acted with faith and obedience, I wouldn’t have been able to experience God’s miraculous work together, seeing the people I served believe in the Lord and be gained by the Lord. So my reaction was the same as Peter’s: “Lord, what a sinner I am, I need Your grace to follow You closely.”
How much I need the grace of the Lord. The result of my service depends on God’s sovereignty. What God wants me to respond to is: I just need to follow Jesus by faith alone. Faith is a lesson to be learned throughout life. I often need to ask the Lord to teach me how to gain a heart of wisdom so that I can work and walk with the Lord in the face of various challenges.
4 Now when He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4)
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