Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead. (John 21:5-13)

Sometimes, we just need to go fishing. After his resurrection, Jesus told his disciples that he would meet them in Galilee. So the disciples returned home, back to the Sea of Galilee, and back to their old lives.

Early one morning after a fruitless and frustrating night of fishing, Jesus appeared on the shore. Jesus invited them to bring some of the fish they’d just caught thanks to him, and to join him in the breakfast he was already cooking for himself. Three years earlier Jesus had called his disciples to become fishers of men near that very spot. A new day was about to begin. Within weeks the Holy Spirit would come and they would start building the church of God.

But that day was just a quiet morning, on the shore of a lake, and a breakfast among friends. Jesus resurrected was the Jesus they had always known. What does this picture do for us today? It lets us know that Jesus is always happy to spend time with us. It doesn’t take a crisis. He’ll be with us during a quiet meal after a long day, or early in the morning before anything happens.

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