Week 43

We had a Zone Conference this week, and watched a 1 hour clip of a talk given by Elder Holland in the MTC in January. It touched me. I wanted to share what I learned.

John 21. He´s gone. He´s died. After 36 months of His ministry, Jesus Christ was gone. The apostles never really understood that He was actually going to leave. For the past three years they had walked with Him, witnessing miracles, being fed by His Love and His Teachings day in and day out. And all of a sudden they were left alone, bereft, devestaded. A tidal wave of events had occured so quickly, just a few short days, and the apostles, whom were still fairly recent converts, were left terrible helpess, watching their Prophet, their King, die on a cross. Their concept of the Kingdom, incomplete as it was, was shattered.

21:3. Peter, the Cheif Ajpostle, knows not what to do, so he goes back to what he was doing when Jesus first found him. ¨Voy a pescar.¨ The last three years had become beautiful memories, but it was time to get back to real life. It was time to work, to do the work that he had known how to do his whole life.

21:5. Jesus, unrecognized, asks, ¨How´s the fishing coming%¨ They reply, Lousy, just lousy. We haven´t caught anything all night¨

21:6. The Master Teacher instructs, another time, how to fish. The apostles must be thinking here, ¨Who´s this guy to think that he can come and tell us how to do our job% We´ve been going at it all night, there´s just not any fish.¨ But, they were fishers again, and they had to work to survive, so they gave it a desperation shot. Their nets fill. They can´t get the fish in the boat.

21:7. John understands. It´s Jesus. Peter hears John´s words, takes one look at the Man on the shore, and leaps to him, diving into the sea.

21:9. A small example of the Charity of Christ. He knows that they´ve been fishing all night, and that they´d arrive hungry, so he makes them breakfast.

And now, starting with verse 15, this is the part that I never really got. I never understood. This is the part which has now become my favoirite story in the Bible.

21:15. Jesús: Simón, hijo de Jonás, % Me amas más que éstos % Simon: Si, Senor, tu sabes que te amo. Jesús: Apacienta mis corderos.

21:16 Jesús: Simón, hijo de Jonás, % Me amas % Peter´s hurt that the Lord is asking him again. With some anxiety he responds again, ¨Si, Senor, tu sabes que te amo¨ Jesus: Pastorea mis ovejas

21:17. Christ, stopping what he´s doing, turns to look Peter right in the eyes. Jesús: Simón, hijo de Jonás, % Me amas%. Peter´s very sensitive about thirds right now. He responds, ¨Senor, tú lo sabes todo, tú sabes que te amo¨. And with a heart-peircing voice, Christ commands His Chief Apostle, Apacienta mis ovejas.

He had asked peter to leave his nets once before, He didn´t want to have to ask it a third time.

Christ didn´t Call Peter to be a fisher of men for three years. His call was to Feed His Sheep FOREVER.

It´s NEVER, EVER over for me. I´m beginning to understand that. I watched President Carra, the Stake President, President Callan the Mission President, and President Foster of the Area Presidency and 70, with their spouses, sitting in the stands yesterday in Stake Conference, and my heart ached. They understand what´s important in life. There´s nothing else they´d rather be doing right now. They asked the missionaries to all stand up, and my hesart burned with joy and pride. Gratitude filled my tired soul, gratitude to work with persons dedicated to God. Gratitude for the opportunity to work a little, sweat a little, cry a little with them as we push forth La Obra Misional.

I will be a Disciple of Jesus Christ for the rest of my life. The material world becomes less and less attractive with every passing day, and it´s because my heart is being filled with Pure Love. There´s no time to waste on things that bring nothing lasting. Do I Love Him% Really% Truly% Do I% If I do, I will not, I can not, I would not go back to my old life after the mission. After being a true fisher of men, I can never go back to oars and boats and nets, to what I knew before, because if I did, it would break the heart of my Savior, and of God Himself. When Peter found this Love, when he could really look the Savior straight in the eyes and say YES, in that moment he became the Great Apostle. A Master Teacher. I want it. I´ll have to work at it. But I´ve decided, with a conviction that I can´t adequately express, to serve my Lord, my God, until the very end of my life. My work will be His work, my glory His glory. There´s nothing more important to me. I love Him. And I´ll show Him that love by feeding His sheep. Forever.

Elder Joshua Stewart