Albert Einstein is traditionally credited with . . .

Albert Einstein is traditionally credited with having coined the expression, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.”  Others maintain that the quote actually came from Ben Franklin, or perhaps Mark Twain.  Still others argue that it was first used by mystery writer Rita Mae Brown in her novel,  Sudden Death.

Regardless of who originally said it, I would like to question whether the statement is, in fact, true.  Granted, it may seem foolish—even crazy—to keep trying something that doesn’t appear to work.  But who’s to say that it won’t work the next time?

In 1875 the thought of laying a telegraph cable between England and the United States was widely viewed as impossible.  However, a team of engineers, under the direction of Sir Charles Bright, were confident that it could be done.  The first line broke when they were only four miles out; the second broke at 226 miles.  The following year a new method was employed.  Two ships met in the middle of the Atlantic, joined cables and began sailing for the opposite coast.  Four more times the cable broke!  Supplies ran low, funding dried up, and newspapers began to question the wisdom of attempting the same thing over and over again, when it obviously wasn’t working.  But on August 5, 1878—despite double-digit failures and mishaps—telegraph communication was finally established between England and the United States!

Think of the story in Luke’s Gospel, when the disciples have been fishing all night with no success, and Jesus suggests that they cast their nets out one more time.  You can imagine what they were thinking—“Jesus, we have been at this all night; and mind you, we’re not rookies.  This is how we make our living.  Sometimes the fish are plentiful, and sometimes they aren’t.  But it’s crazy to keep trying the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.  It’s time to call it quits.”

Nevertheless—perhaps in an attempt to humor Jesus—they cast their nets out once more.  And this time instead of coming up empty, their nets are overflowing with fish—so much so that the boat starts to sink and the disciples struggle just to haul the catch ashore.

I’m willing to concede that sometimes—maybe even most of the time—Albert Einstein had it right.  There is something crazy about making the same foolish mistake over and over again, forever expecting a different outcome.  But as Jesus reminded his disciples, “All things are possible with God.”  So the next time you feel Christ calling you to do something—no matter how hopeless or futile it may seem—trust that the Lord will find a way to make it work!