Encounters With Jesus That Change Our LivesSample

Day 6 — The Encounter That Reveals Purpose: Peter by the Fire

Dawn by the lake was quiet. Peter—the one who once walked on the water—had gone back to what he knew before Jesus: fishing. After failure, fear, and denying his Master three times, Peter no longer felt like an apostle, just a man who had disappointed the Master.

“ ‘I’m going out to fish,’ Simon Peter told them, and they said, ‘We’ll go with you.’ So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing” (John 21:3 NIV).

Have you felt that way—wanting to go back to the old when you feel you failed at the new? Peter had been called to fish for people, but the weight of his guilt took him back to the lake. Even there, Jesus went looking for him.

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

Jesus didn’t wait for Peter to return to the temple; he went to his routine, his boat, his weariness. And from the shore, he spoke with a question that seemed casual but hid an invitation:

“He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’ ‘No,’ they answered” (John 21:5 NIV).

It wasn’t a rebuke; it was a reminder. Peter had worked all night without fruit, but Jesus was about to show him that his purpose doesn’t depend on performance, but on obedience.

“He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some’ ” (John 21:6a NIV).

And so it was: the net filled so much they couldn’t haul it in. The miracle awakened the memory. “It is the Lord!” John cried. Peter didn’t wait. He jumped into the water and swam to Jesus. He didn’t run from him like Adam, but toward him.

And when he reached the shore, he found something he never imagined: a fire burning, with fish on it, and some bread (John 21:9). The same kind of fire where Peter had denied him now became the place where he would be restored.

Jesus didn’t avoid the subject. In John 21:15–17 NIV he asked him three times, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” One question for each denial. Each time Peter replied, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,” Jesus not only forgave him; he re-sent him into his purpose: “Feed my lambs… Take care of my sheep… Feed my sheep.”

That is the Master’s heart: he not only cleans our past; he gives us back our calling. Jesus doesn’t need perfect disciples, but hearts unafraid to start again. Peter wasn’t discarded by his mistake; he was refined by his process. The same one who denied Christ would stand in Acts 2 to proclaim him with power. Guilt had driven him to fish for fish again, but love brought him back to fish for souls.

Jesus is still lighting fires to restore his own. Perhaps, you too have gone back to the old, feeling your chance has passed. But he waits for you on the shore, with a fire burning and breakfast prepared. He asks you gently—not to expose you, but to reactivate you: “Do you still love me?” And if your answer is “yes,” he will again entrust to you what you love. God’s callings are not canceled; they are reaffirmed by grace.

Practical reflection

• What things did you stop doing because you felt you failed God?
• What “fire” is Jesus using today to restore you?
• How can you return to serving from love rather than from guilt?

Suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank you that you do not define me by my mistakes. Thank you that you wait for me on the shore with love and purpose. Today, I lay down my guilt and embrace your calling once again. Renew me to serve you with freedom and gratitude. Amen.