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FISHERS OF MEN
Then Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you
will be catching people.
Ever since I can remember,
my dad was an avid fisherman. He bought a cabin at Fall River
Lake, where his ten unruly moppets could frolic in the muddy
water by day and count the stars in the summer firmament by
night. There he could fulfill his youthful dream of plying the
waters for bass, crappie and, occasionally, a nasty gar. Because
he was also an avid photographer, there are countless pictures
of a grinning dad standing in front of the well house with
glistening strings of fish. And we ate all of them (except the
gar!).
I can only imagine Peter's astonishment when he entered the deep
part of the lake at Jesus' command and brought up "nets that
were tearing" with fish. He was immediately humbled and changed
by this event when Jesus told him he would be catching people.
This was a foreshadowing of Acts 2:41: "Those who accepted his
message were baptized, and about three thousand were added that
day."
Peter knew he was a people magnet. He had been called by Christ
to do his work. Finally in verse 11 we are told that the
fishermen "left everything and followed him." Peter then spent
the rest of his earthly life following the teachings of Jesus.
His detachment from all material things enabled him to serve the
Master with all of his heart and soul, even to the point of his
own crucifixion.
Dear Jesus, help us to
detach ourselves from earthly bonds and give selflessly to
others the love you have given us. Amen.
Joanne Ehrlich
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