Loved When I Don't Stop To Notice Him

 

“Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.” (‭‭John‬ ‭21:4 NIV‬)

He’s there even when we don’t realize it.

To them, it was just an ordinary night on the lake. Row the boat. Cast net. Reel it in. Come up empty. Repeat. Hour after hour, they threw out the net, and each time came up empty. 

That describes some of our lives. Activity with no results. Wheels spinning, no traction. Frustrated. No movement, no progress. Goals become elusive. Results hard to come by. Worse yet, Jesus is nowhere to be found. So we may think.

Nowhere does the Bible say that the disciples were looking for Jesus. In fact, that’s one of the challenges of being busy. We can get so caught up with what we have in front of us that we neglect to see who’s around us. 

Jesús was standing there watching them toil. On the shore, with the power of resurrection and complete control of the sea at His command, stood Jesus, and they didn’t notice. How many times is He around us, and we have no clue? Is it the moments when we are working our hardest and have no thought about His presence?

We see His love on the shore. He was watching the disciples closely. Watching their movements. Observing their actions. Keenly in tune with each cast of the net and disappointing retrieval. He found them. 

No GPS. No pining of a cell phone or a direct message. He knew where they were. With all the fishermen fishing that day, He found them. He knew their habits, their boat, their desired catch. It was not an accident. No lucky chance. He was able to stand on that shore because He knows us even when we don’t know Him. He finds us where we aren’t even looking for Him. When we have other things on our mind, we are in the center of His. When we are tired. When we are too busy, even when we don’t realize it, He’s there. He takes the time to see and watch over us.  All because He loves us. All because He loves you.  

“The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:8 NIV) 

Thought Questions:

  1. Why do you think the disciples didn’t realize it was Jesus? 
  2. In what ways could Jesus show up in your life, and you are not aware that it’s Him?