Breakfast Is Served
John 21:5-6 (NIV)
He called out to them, ’Friends, haven’t you any fish?’
‘No,’ they answered.
He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
John 21:12 (NIV)
Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ None of the disciples dared ask him, ‘Who are you?’ They knew it was the Lord.
I’m not a fan of breakfast.
The shock horror---yes, as one of the co-leaders of the Gas Street Prayer and Breakfast group I rarely eat breakfast. But if I could choose someone famous, now or in the past, to make me breakfast… it would be Jesus.
The grief-stricken disciples went back to their old fishing job after the resurrection. They had fished all night and caught nothing. A random guy on the shore, who was in fact Jesus, advised them what to do and it worked!
Often when things are not going our way, we distract ourselves and turn to other things for comfort. We try to find something to fill voids in our lives. When we obey God’s instructions and stop doing things our own way, he promptly takes care of our needs. He made the disciples breakfast after the stressful night they had had. He knew they were hungry and took care of it even before they got to the shore.
When we obey, we receive in abundance (their net was full!) and we are shown how to solve difficult situations. Whatever our expertise, employed or unemployed, we all need counsel from God for our daily activities and especially the tricky ones! He is the ultimate expert because he created everything and therefore he can help in any situation – even those brain-racking ones. Peter was an experienced fisherman but when he followed Jesus’ instructions, he found Jesus knew best!
Today, let’s sit down with Jesus and allow him spiritually to ‘make us breakfast’; maybe you’re not a fish and bread kind of person but you’re more avocado on toast. Great…he can do that too, Jesus cares and knows exactly what you need.
Prayer — Jesus, I thank you that you are all-knowing; help me not to feel defeated and not to lose heart. Help me obey your every instruction.