Full Nets, Open Eyes
They were sitting scattered around the court yard. I sat in a corner, watching Thomas and Nathanael playfully wrestle each other in the grass. A few others were hanging around too, lying in the grass, staring into the distance, including James and John the famous duo. Except for Thomas and Nat, the rest of us were really just lost in thought. Going over all that had happened over the past few weeks, each one with myriad questions, yet reluctant to reveal too much, so as not to be seen as unbelieving, or lacking in understanding.
Jesus had appeared to us a number of times, each time with one message or the other and reassurances that the promise of the father to send a comforter and companion would be fulfilled. Yet we still were not sure in what form this companion would come or when exactly. The last few weeks had demonstrated to us how little we really understood of the man called Jesus. Just when we thought we had it down pat, he shows up with another angle, a different perspective and more insight to his story.
I was still musing over all this, staring straight ahead at nothing in particular, when it occurred to me, maybe I needed to go fishing. I threw a few pebbles, aiming them at the water. All this thinking was not doing me much good. I was getting bored and restless and I just needed to do something routine and familiar. I quickly allowed the rest of the pebbles slip through my fingers to the ground, as I got up and called out to no one in particular, “I’m going fishing.” I didn’t wait for a reply as I walked down the grass, leading towards the boat. John sat up abruptly, from where he lay in the grass. “We’ll go with you”, he said, signalling to James who sat a few yards away from where we were. In the end, they all opted to go with me.
Like we had done many other times before, James and I untied the knots as the others climbed into the boat one after the other. Before long, we were pulling away from the shore and into the water. The weather was just right. Not a cloud in sight, the sea breeze was refreshingly cool, making the skin tingle. The playful banter in the boat made me smile. It felt like old times, and the only thing missing was the teacher’s presence. But after hours, the banter turned to quietness and my smile started to give way to frustration. We had caught nothing.
I found my thoughts wondering back to a similar night. The first time I met Jesus, face to face. It had been another long frustrating night, and we had long given up any hope for a catch when he came to us to borrow our boat. How could we have imagined that through that singular encounter our lives would be so completely transformed? I heard a deep sigh escape from John’s lips, and I glanced his way briefly. Was he thinking the same thoughts as I?
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We were still at it when dawn came upon us. Dew-drenched grass appeared in the distance, appearing closer as we approached the shore. A man stood on the shore, probably one of the early travellers looking for a boat to take him across into neighbouring Capernaum or the Decapolis region.
“Friends, haven’t you any fish?” the man called out. James and I glanced at each other, wondering who the man was talking to. Was he looking to buy fish instead? “No”, Nathanael answered.
“Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” The man called out, again.
Wait a minute, who was this man standing on the shore, no doubt a foreigner, telling us, experienced fishermen, who had been at sea all night, where to look for fish? Did he think it was amusing? Initially I paid him no mind. He was clearly being funny and I was no longer in the mood. But James and John weren’t waiting for any directives, as they swiftly took hold of opposite sides of the net and swung it towards the right side of the boat, missing entangling my head in the net, by a fraction of an inch, as I ducked.
They let it into the water and were almost sucked into it by the sudden weight that pulled the net deeper in. Two of the others with us, hurried to their assistance in hauling the heavy net back into the boat. But they couldn’t, there was so much fish caught in it. I stood in the boat staring at this man, still standing on the shore, staring back at us with a knowing smile. Suddenly, John let out a shout of recognition, “It is the Lord”. Immediately John said it, it dawned on me that it was truly Jesus. I promptly wrapped my outer garment around me and jumped into the water, swimming swiftly towards the shore where he stood. Thomas took over rowing the boat with Nathanael, as the others towed the net full of fish. By the time they got to the shore, I was standing with Jesus, where he had started a fire of burning coals with some fish on it and bread. They looked shell-shocked. Quite frankly, we all were.
“Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” He said, pointing to the boat. So, I climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore with some help. It was so heavy, 153 in number, yet what I didn’t understand was how come the net did not tear from the sheer weight of the fish.
“Come and have breakfast” Jesus beckoned to us. We glanced at one another, watching to see who would take the first step. The confusion behind nervous smiles, the burning question on everyone’s lips but which no one dared utter — “Who are you?” Because deep down, we all knew what the answer was. That was the third time He appeared to us after the resurrection.
