In the Gospel we hear that the disciples spend a night fishing and caught nothing. Notice: when they try and catch fish without Jesus they catch nothing; when Jesus is present they catch more than they need.
Could it be that their failed fishing expedition is a metaphor for the way they feel about themselves, their lives, at this time? Their hopes were dashed, their lives which seemed so full of promise, are now empty. They stand on the precipice of fruitlessness. First an empty tomb, now empty nets – leaving them now with empty
lives.
Take a look today at the ‘net of your own life’. What do you see in the net of your life? Is it full, half-full, empty? What have you got in your net? Sometimes we fill our nets with things that are not helpful, things that will not enable us to be fed and nourished. These can be all sorts of things: material possessions, negative or arrogant attitudes, hardness,
bitterness, selfishness. None of these will nourish and feed us.
Another way of looking at this might be to ask what moves me towards God and what pushes me away from God? What might you be dragging in your net that is so heavy that you cannot pull it along?
Towards the end of the failed fishing expedition Jesus invites them to cast their nets onto the starboard side (the right side) of the boat. He promises them that they will find something and they do. The receive in abundance. When we are willing to listen to the Lord, despite our hesitation, God gives us in ways that we cannot always imagine. In what way, at this time in your life, may God be directing you to cast your net in a different place? Might you have to row yourself into different
waters?
Take some time today to consider what is in the net of your life.
What in the net is nourishing you?
What in the net is, perhaps, leaving you feeling empty and hungry?
You might also want to consider where God is asking you, at this time, to cast your net.
