John 3:16 - For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that
whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (NIV)
Last Thanksgiving weekend, my daughter and I joined the many others who were
intently watching the salmon making their way up the Sauble River to their
spawning ground. As we watched them swimming upstream against the current, I
thought of some lessons that we, as Christians, could learn from them.
Each fall, adult sockeye salmon return to their natal stream, river, or lake, to
spawn and bury their eggs. Salmon have the determination and perseverance to
keep on going until they reach their final destination -- their spawning ground.
Their journey is upstream against the strong current, which pushes them back
many times. Sometimes they get caught. We saw a fisherman catch and reel in a
salmon, but then he released it. My daughter pointed out a sign for the "catch
and release" law, allowing fishermen to catch the salmon, but then requiring
them to release them again.
Our Christian walk is like that of the salmon. We are battling against the evils
of this dark world -- often going against the crowd. Many times, we, too, come
against strong opposition, but we who believe in Jesus, when we die, will
inherit eternal life. We, too, at times, get caught by Satan, and, although
Satan doesn't release us, Jesus does. He is always with us, showing us how to be
free from our sin. Jesus died on the cross for our sins so that we could win the
victory over sin and death.
God has a plan for our lives, just as He has a plan for the salmon. Let us
persevere, then, as the salmon do, year after year, and run the race marked out
for us. Let us keep our eyes on Jesus until, at the end of our journey, we have
reached our final destination -- heaven.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank You that You have prepared a place for us, and
that You have a plan for each of our lives! Keep us from growing weary and
discouraged. Help us, through our times of trouble and temptation, to keep our
eyes fixed on Jesus, as we run the race that You have marked out for us, knowing
that even death cannot separate us from You, and that, at the end of our
journey, we will inherit eternal life, and live with You forever. Amen.
Dee Renaud
ed.dee.renaud@sympatico.ca
Sauble Beach, Ontario, Canada
Thanks to http://daily.presbycan.ca
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