FRIDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER

I am going fishing.

Why would Peter return to fishing? It’s possible that his hope was starting to waver. Yes, he had seen the risen Lord. He knew that Jesus had forgiven him and had removed his guilt. But maybe there were nagging questions: Could he still be an apostle? Was there still a place for him in Jesus’ kingdom?

So Peter went back to what he knew. He and his friends fished all night—but without catching anything. Then he heard a man call out to them from the shore, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat” (John 21:6). Surely those words sparked a memory of another morning, years before, when Jesus had told him to lower his nets for a miraculous catch. That first amazing catch was a turning point in Peter’s life; it happened immediately before Jesus called him to follow him and start “catching men” (Luke 5:10). Could it be Jesus again?

Maybe Peter’s heart started to lift as he pulled in the net, heavy with another miraculous catch of fish. Maybe he started to wonder if another turning point could be in store for him. As we know, just following the passage we read today, Jesus recommissions Peter, and Peter reverses his threefold denial with a threefold reaffirmation of love (John 21:15-19). Jesus hadn’t changed his mind about Peter!

When Peter looked at his past, he saw his failures and sins, and that made his hope waver. But Jesus saw a much bigger picture. He hadn’t forgotten Peter’s yes three years before. His call for Peter remained. That’s because he is the God who never gives up. And he won’t give up on you.

You may not have miraculous signposts pointing to pivotal moments in your relationship with the Lord. But even those small moments when Jesus called you, brought you into deeper relationship with him, or set you off on a new phase of life can be heavenly reminders of his love. Let him reassure you that, even if you have stumbled over the years, he hasn’t forgotten your yes to him. He is always ready to welcome you back. Let that assurance prepare and inspire you, like Peter, to reaffirm your love for Jesus and your willingness to follow him wherever he leads.

“Jesus, thank you that you never give up on me!”

Acts 4:1-12
Psalm 118:1-2, 4, 22-27
John 21:1-14