Listen

Later, Jesus himself appeared again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. This is how it happened: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, Zebedee’s sons, and two other disciples were together. Simon Peter told them, “I’m going fishing.”

They said, “We’ll go with you.” They set out in a boat, but throughout the night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples didn’t realize it was Jesus.

John 21:1-4

Think

The disciples, Pete, Tommy, Nathan, the Zebedee sons, Johnny and Jamie, and two other brothers are all back on the fishing boat. The same boating life that Jesus first found Peter, James, and John three years earlier. Fishing is what they know, and recently, life got really hard. Jesus got lynched and then rose up from the grave three days later. Their world has been turned upside down and they just want to go back to the good ole days, when life felt easier – safer.

Don’t we all do this? Life gets hard, change happens, and we go back to what we know. Well, at least we try. But then Jesus keeps showing up often without us even recognizing him. When your world takes a major turn, it can be hard to keep moving forward, to keep following the way of Christ. We get scared. We close our eyes and miss Jesus waving at us from the shores of God’s love.

Today, open your eyes. Look for Christ. Trust in God’s love that will lead you through difficult times.

Erica Whitaker

Pray

God, I ask that you open my eyes to your Son, to see a way back to the shores of your never-ending love.

Guide me through this day, especially during the difficult moments when I want to return to the way things used to be.

Help me focus on the future, focus on following Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Go

See.

Listen.

Feel the love of Christ pulse through your heart.