Jeff Adams

No, it’s not what you might think. A few years ago there was a group of fine young men in our church who used to run together. They had an acronym that they shared with me. One would say, “Where you at?” The answer was, “I’m at the BEACH,” meaning Baskin’ Everlastin’ After Choosin’ Heaven.

I thought of that today as I was reading in John 21. In the initial confusion after the crucifixion and resurrection, the disciples had gone back to Galilee. They were discouraged, confused and disorientated, having lost their sense of purpose and vision. Arriving back at the lake, Peter suggested they go fishing, something they had not done for some time. This would probably also be the last time any of them would go fishing. They fished all night and caught nothing. You probably know the story of how Jesus called to them from the shore and directed them to cast the net on the right side of the ship resulting in a catch so big they couldn’t handle it.

Verse four of John 21 is what caught my attention. It says that as the dawn was breaking, Jesus stood on the beach, but none of the disciples knew that it was Jesus. Here they were looking for direction, purpose and provision, and there stood Jesus on the beach where they were headed, yet they didn’t know he was there. Here’s the point: no matter where you are headed, no matter what the circumstances, and no matter whether you recognize him or not, Jesus is already there waiting for you, standing on your beach.