Gone Fishing
Sea of Galilee Reflections
John 21 Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas, also known as Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Often I can be involved thinking I know what I am doing, only to be frustrated when attempts fail.
What feelings arise, and what responses are made?
After fishing all night, they hadn’t caught a thing. ...
“Cast the net on the right side of the boat,” someone calls out from shore. They do, and they catch too many fish to haul in. When they realize it’s Jesus, Peter dives overboard and swims to shore, the other disciples paddling behind with the net full of fish. - That is when they find a fire and breakfast ready. John 21
Fishing on the Sea of Galilee - near Mensa Christi- St. Peter`s Primacy
It is in our failures and struggles that we most forcefully feel the presence of Christ, inviting us to cast our nets to the other side. We are not alone.
Thank God for his constant presence and guidance.
It happened “just as day was breaking.” A line of pink across the eastern horizon, and patches of mist rising up from the water yet to be burnt off by the rising sun. The gentle sound of waves lapping against the boat. Frustrated fishermen gaze at the surface of the sea, looking for flashes of silver signalling a school of fish. No doubt weary after working all night and disappointed at having nothing to show for it but empty nets. That’s when a voice called to them from the shore, saying, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” The disciples thought that they were alone, but Jesus had been watching them all the while.
That’s when Peter sees it: a charcoal fire. Like the one on that terrible night when he denied his Lord. A fire to signify that God is a God of second chances, and a new fire was about to be ignited in all their hearts.
Is it too much to say that what happened that day on the shore of the Sea of Galilee happens today in your life and mine? We are in our little boats, casting our nets and hauling them in empty, frustrated by failure, disappointed and thinking we are alone. But the risen
Lord who stands on the shore has been watching us all along.
Thank you Jesus that you are always watching us, even when we fail and
are disappointed, you are there to encourage, help and care for us. Help
us to recognise you and your directing. Amen
St.Peter`s Primacy, Mensa Christie
purported site of Resurrection appearance
And the breakfast menu…
fish sizzling over the fire. Like when Jesus multiplied the fish and loaves
at the feeding of the 5,000. Now they would be commissioned to go fish for people.
It’s such an ordinary and earthy scene, Jesus eating breakfast on the beach with his friends. But this is what the risen Jesus does. He takes ordinary things and works in extraordinary ways. A charcoal fire to remind Peter of his denial, Fish, and. Bread and the extraordinary multiplication.. You and me. When we are fed by his presence in
the Communion, our hearts set ablaze and sent into our everyday
, ordinary lives to be His love to our community.
God use our ordinary life as a vehicle for your extraordinary purposes.
When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” (v 9-10)
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.
Breakfast was already cooked – why ask for more fish from the catch? Perhaps like a young child “helping” a parent, they don`t really need the help, or the child have much to offer, but the parent wants to include them.
Jesus wants to include us in his work. The disciples experienced this when Jesus took what little food they provided and multiplied it to feed many. After the resurrection he made this point again. The disciples had fished all night. In the morning Jesus caused them to haul in a tremendous catch. Jesus built a fire and began cooking breakfast. With the aroma of sizzling fish filling the air, he asked them to bring some they had just caught. Why ask this when he already had fish on the fire? Because he wanted to include them. Jesus shows again that he would work through the disciples’ efforts and multiply them into something remarkable.
Lord, use our small efforts in your grand plan.
After the fish breakfast, Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him? All Peter’s responses were affirmative. Was Jesus really wondering if Peter really loved Him? Or was there something else at work here? We cannot tell what was the tone of the exchange. (John 21:3-17) Jesus was getting Peter to realize that no matter what he did, he still loved Jesus. Jesus knew this, but wanted Peter to acknowledge it. It was like Jesus saying, “Say it again Peter…..” The answer abounds three times with YES, YES, YES! Jesus tells him that he still has work for him to do. Feed the new Believers (lambs) and nourish those who already believe (sheep). God is a God of second (3rd & 4th) chances! but we need to recognise it both in head and heart. Peter may have found the challenge uncomfortable, but it helped to make his belief in Jesus concrete, and equip him for the times ahead.
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Jesus if we have gone back to fishing, help us to get ashore, seek you afresh, receive forgiveness and be affirmed that you Jesus want to use us again!
Statue at Mensa Christie
At times our failures can put us in self- imposed exile. We can be harder
on ourselves than Jesus would be. He sees our slip ups, but He knows our heart. When we fall, we can ask His forgiveness and then get up and see the things He has for us to do.
See Jesus with a smile on His face as He says, “You love me, don’t you!”
Sea of Galilee encounters
Much of Jesus` Ministry was centred around the Sea of Galilee. A delightful area of rolling hills, little towns and villages dominated by the Sea. also known as the Sea of Tiberius after the largest town in the area or Lake Kinnereth., a freshwater lake that abounds with life even though below sea level..
Come and join us as we seek Jesus in his homeland....
A boat ride across the sea for such a small lake, can be quite varied. Calm as a mill pond and clear in the shallows, a sea with a fair chop or a raging tempest. The lake in the rift valley is surrounded by high terrain which means the surrounding hills act like a funnel and when the wind changes direction, it can whip up this relatively small lake significantly. Reminiscent of the gospel story.
A sudden, violent storm had arisen on the Sea of Galilee. Even experienced boat handlers like the disciples were scared. Jesus was
in the boat, too, but he was asleep. The disciples woke him up.
There is a symbolic message here. The message is that if Jesus is in our boat, if he is with us wherever we go, we don’t have to be afraid. All we have to do is look to him, trust him, and he will deliver us out of the storm.
We all face many storms in life: worries about health, anxieties about the future, sorrow over the loss of a loved one, and many other things that you can name... But when we trust Jesus, our Lord does indeed give us peace in stormy times.
Heading for Capernaum
I have been on the Sea of Galilee when suddenly a terrible storm raged, The wind was so strong, the waves had whitecaps, with every intention to swamp our tourist boat, and sent angry spray and waves washing over the gunnels. The sky looked menacing, when it could be seen from the rolling, heaving deck. It was not a good day to be on the water. And yet there we were, totally soaked through, aiming to cross this lake in a very similar direction to the one Jesus and his disciples had taken.
The apostle Paul knew God`s peace. Many storms had blown fiercely into his life. He had been flogged, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, and came close to being executed several times. Still he was able to calmly say that:
“The peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard
your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” Philippians 4:7
Lord, when the storms of life threaten us, help us to trust you and experience your amazing peace. Amen.
It was night and a great storm arose as Jesus and his disciples were crossing a lake. Water was swamping the boat and yet Jesus was fast asleep in the stern. His disciples wake him up with a complaint about his indifference to their dire situation. Jesus rebukes the wind and speaks to the seas and, to their amazement, the storm subsides. In a thinly veiled reference to
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“You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them.”
Psalm 89:9
Jesus, Lord of nature, calm our fears and give us faith so that we may follow you with confidence when the storms blow.
Jesus had slept peacefully in the stern of a boat that was tossing amidst the waves and taking on water. His disciples found no rest in bailing, cried for help, as they struggled for control of the boat. Were they not all in the same storm?
Jesus wasn’t able to rest just because his cushion was comfortable. It wasn’t the quiet rocking of the boat or the warmth of the sun that lulled him to sleep. During a storm that appeared out-of-control, Jesus rested in the truth that God is in control. Having peace in our little boats when the storms come depends on living out the heartfelt truth that God is holding on to us at all times, and have faith in that hold. Jesus challenged his disciples, and challenges us to choose to consistently rest in that truth, rather than panicking every time the storms arise.
Lord of heaven and earth, help us to rest in your sovereign control.
