Daily Delight

Please read John 21:1-8 as preparation for today’s devotional. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀It seems we can all relate to the disciple Peter a bit. He wants so badly to follow Christ and show his love for the Lord, but the poor guy just can’t catch a break! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀His struggle rings especially true in John 21:1-8. In this passage, Jesus appears to the disciples a second time after His resurrection – but not before Peter has a major anxiety attack and disobeys Jesus. In fear and uncertainty of not having Christ physically present to guide his way, Peter turns back to his old work and decides to go fishing. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Dragging six disciples along with him, Peter pulls an all-nighter fishing, to no avail. At dawn, Jesus appears on the shore, but in their sleep deprivation and doubt, the disciples do not recognize Him. Jesus tells the disciples to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. When the nets come up overflowing, John turns to Peter stating, “It is the Lord!” Hearing this, Peter literally throws himself overboard and swims to Jesus- without a single hesitation! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀How does Peter's story relate to us? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Like Peter, we go back to things that are familiar when we're scared and cannot see what Jesus wants for us. It becomes hard to obey Him and cast our nets in the right direction when we are not in the company of our Lord. When we can see Him and recognize His work in our lives, we're more apt to jump into the deep for Him.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀However, He calls us to jump in and follow His commands, even when we can't recognize Him or feel His presence. Even when it's uncomfortable, cold, or deep. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀If you find yourself walking old paths, or turning back to old habits and catching nothing, you may not be throwing your net on the right side of the boat. It may be time to surrender your pride and jump into new waters. God will ask you to do “crazy” things, but just trust Him and be obedient. He knows what He’s doing. This I promise you. ⠀ 

About the Author

Hannah Aulbach

Hannah is a 21-year-old college student from St. Louis, MO, currently finishing up her undergrad in Child & Family Development at Missouri State University. She has worked to keep Christ at the forefront during her college experience, and she hopes to inspire other young women to join her on a Christ-driven journey.

Hannah loves serving the Lord through mission work, and she has spent the past two summers as a local missionary sharing the Gospel with children and teens in the St. Louis area. When she isn’t catching up on projects for school, Hannah can be found on Chick-Fil-A runs with friends, hiking new trails, jamming to her favorite praise & worship, working out, or working on a new painting project.

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