We have all been through things in our lives. Every single one of us. It may be things that you have brought upon yourself, or it may be things that you have had to walk through. Seasons of pain, seasons of hurt, anger, sadness etc.. I personally have been through much loss in my life, which in turn has walked me through seasons of feeling abandoned, rejected, tremendous fear etc... If you are breathing at all, then you have walked through something in your life.
God placed this picture in my heart of fishing. I grew up fishing with my Dad who taught me early on how to bait my own hook, take a fish off the hook, gut and clean them. I didn't LOVE fishing but it was a way to spend time with my Daddy, something I so very much desired. My sweet husband too loves to fish. We used to go a lot together until one day he told me that I talk too much for fishing. I laughed and laughed. I love to talk and be social, but talking and fishing don't go well together because talking scares the fish away because they can hear you. We have since found other things to do together instead. ha ha :)
When laying this upon my heart, the Lord reminded me of what we do when we catch fish. Upon a catch, a fisherman places the fish into a bucket, live well, or on a string that stays in the water along side the boat. The Lord, however, said to me, "but what if we had to hold on to all those fish while we were fishing?" I thought to myself, "well that is an odd thing, but okay Lord?!"
If we had to hold each fish we caught, it wouldn't be long before our arms became full, one by one. Eventually we would not have full range to use our arms to cast or reel in as we are holding onto our fish. I don't know about you, but I always want to be ready when the "Big Daddy Fish" of all fish decides to take a bite at my hook, so I can reel him in, but with an arm full of fish, well.....it could be a bit difficult. After several hours in the sun, and holding slimy fish that will die in your arms....well you will carry a fragrance that only a mother could love, because you are gonna STINK.
Often in life we have had things happen to us, things that we have had to walk through, and we hold on to those things or remnants of those things instead of placing them down at the feet of Jesus. We get comfortable and used to holding those things, so much that we don't even notice the scent they can leave upon us. I personally have been guilty of this. When we hold on to those things, however, we lose the full range in which God wants to use us. We limit ourselves because we choose not to lay it down, it becomes part of our identity. That is not what God intended for your life. God does not want the things we have walked through to become your identity. God wants you to walk in freedom, and not holding on to the things that have happened to you, but instead moving forward to the things that God has for you. When I walk through a door, I don't want the first thing people see is me holding an arm full of stinky fish, I want them to see the joy of the Lord radiating from me. They may find out eventually in my testimony that I have dealt with some stinky fish in my life, but I want the glow of the presence of the Lord upon my life to out shine anything I have ever walked through. When I praise and worship, I want my arms to be free of any of the stink that life has tried to lay upon me so that I can fully give my full praise to Him without any kind of hindrance possibly getting in the way. I need to lay any stinky fish that I may be holding on to, down at the feet of Jesus.
I remember when I was a little girl, after out fishing with my Dad and catching a ton of Bluegill, that after he had gutted some of them to eat, he also took many many of them to the garden and began to bury them. I remember being horrified, wondering if he was trying to grow fish plants because I didn't understand what he was doing. He then laughed and said, "no honey, fish make the best fertilizer for a garden for plants to grow". When the Lord reminded me of this, it took my breath away.
It is true that God makes all things work together for our good.
Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
So everything you have walked through, been through, dealt with, no matter how big or small, God wants to use for fertilizer to help you grow, but you have to lay it down. If you hold on to it, you will continue to deal with the stinky smelly stench that it will leave upon you and will lose the full range in which He wants to use you to build the kingdom. Letting go is not always easy because we have become so comfortable and used to holding on and may not even notice the smell. Once you let go and lay it down, then He can clean you up and show you the freshness and fragrance and full beauty of the plan He has for your life.
Are you carrying any stinky fish around with you? Lay them down at His feet today wont you. God bless ya
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