Daily Devotions
Today’s Reading: John 21:1-14 & Psalm 136
“I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.”
John 21:3
Pretty ordinary scene, isn’t it? The disciples were simply standing around, wondering what to do, and they decided to go fishing. Then into that ordinary scene stepped their extraordinary Lord, showing a real interest in them, calling out, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” (John 21:5).
Likewise, He is interested in you and me. Into our ordinaries, our extraordinary Lord comes asking, “How are you doing?” He doesn’t really have to ask—He’s God and He knows. But we need to know He’s interested and that He cares about even our most ordinary activities, problems, and concerns. It may not be as if we’ve bottomed out and feel abandoned; it’s just that things, our ordinaries, are just that—ordinary and nothing much seems to be happening.
All we really need is to know that someone’s interested, someone cares. And we have such a Someone—His name is Jesus. Because we are His people, because He has claimed us as His own through the saving waters of Holy Baptism, all and any of our activities interest Him. If we care, He cares. What an extraordinary Lord for our ordinary lives!
As we stand between the day of His crucifixion and the day of His resurrection, His Word assures us that we are in relationship with Him at all times and in all places. This is our extraordinary Lord stepping in to our ordinary days—caring, listening, and meeting our needs. Our reaction? Let’s take the words of worship and praise offered by those early disciples: “It is the Lord!” (John 21:7).
Prayer
Lord Jesus, our Redeemer and Friend, help us to recognize and acknowledge Your presence in our daily lives so that we may offer You thanksgiving and praise for all the ways You watch over Your beloved people; in Your holy name we pray. Amen.
Response
A challenge, if you will: The next time one of your “ordinaries” in life is met, praise your extraordinary Lord for being there for you!