I was born in Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes. These lakes are filled with millions and millions of fish. And Minnesota is filled with millions of hopeful fishermen. I have also lived in Montana, home to the world’s finest trout streams and rivers. The fish that live in those streams have attracted millions of hopeful fly-fishermen. Though I have fished in Minnesota and Montana with both spinning reels and fly rods, I have never truly hoped to catch a fish.
This being said, I still have nice memories of the times I have been fishing, usually with my dad. That I was rarely successful at landing a fish probably made for better memories as, even today, I shudder at the prospect of what to do with the fish caught on the end of the line. The eagerness to hang onto a slimy fish or put one’s fingers down a fish throat to retrieve a barbed hook is not something I can easily summon. Perhaps the hope I maintained while fishing was more about NOT catching a fish?
The disciples of Jesus’ day fished by casting nets and dragging them back into the boat. This is the setting for our next resurrection story from John’s gospel. Unsettled and uncertain, the disciples understandably retreat to familiar surroundings which, for them, means a fishing boat out on the sea of Galilee. I suspect the disciples held on to a variety of hopes as they floated in their boat and not just a hope for filling their nets.
They likely hoped to avoid the same persecution by the Roman and religious authorities that had brought Jesus to the cross. And though they had new-found confidence in the promise of resurrection, they likely still hoped their own deaths weren’t imminent. Other hopes might have been for a faithful response to Jesus’ expectations that they carry on where he left off.
What are the hopes that you hold onto today? Nets filled to bursting are the symbolic response for the abundance of God’s faithfulness to the disciples. What sign might signal God’s faithfulness for you? What sign might already be in view?
May God’s peace flow abundantly your way this day. – Pastor Peter
Let us pray… God of hope, point us to the places where our nets will be filled. Surround us with your reassuring presence so that we might face up to the challenges of this day. Amen.