Friday 5 April 2024

Today is Friday 5 April, in the 1st week of Eastertide.

Salt of the Sound sings, ‘Praise to the Lord’.

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation
O my soul, praise him, for he is your health and salvation
Come, all who hear; now to his temple draw near
Join me in glad adoration
Praise to the Lord, above all things so wondrously reigning
Sheltering you under his wings, and so gently sustaining
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do
If with his love he befriends you
Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him
Let the Amen sound from his people again
Gladly forever adore him
Let the Amen sound from his people again
Gladly forever adore him




Today’s reading is from the Gospel of John.

John 21:1-14

After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will go with you.’ They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 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 lake. 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 and 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.

“I am going fishing…that night they caught nothing”. What might these disciples have been feeling at this time?

When Simon Peter heard it was Jesus, he put clothes on over his naked body in order to leap into the water. Not long ago, he had denied that he knew Jesus three times…What do you think was going on inside him in this moment?

“None of the disciples dared to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ …They knew…it was the Lord”. How did they know it was him do you think? Have you ever had an experience like this?

Now listen once more as the passage is read a second time. Is there a word, or a phrase, or a moment in the narrative, that really speaks to you? What might God be saying to you here, do you think?

Now take a moment to look back over this time of prayer, and see if you can gather some of what you have experienced and turn it all into a prayer to God that might sum it up.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.