“The old familiar places”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Friday, April 22, 2022
John 21:1-14 (Forward, p. 83) CEV p. 1130
Many authors have waxed eloquent about the old familiar places or the old familiar faces. The eminent essayist of the Roman Period, Charles Lamb, wrote a poem entitled, “The Old Familiar Faces’, in which he suggests that reminded of times past can be like treasure troves that we can visit when our present lives seem overly difficult. And Sammy Fain and Irving Kahal, in 1937, wrote a similarly nostalgic song, “I’ll be seeing you…in all the old familiar places.”
It is something of that whimsy, that nostalgia, that Jesus evokes in today’s account. Just think of all the meals He and the disciples had shared together and just how often they had graced the shores (and waters) of the Sea of Galilee. It was something akin to ‘old home week.’ It seems entirely fitting that Jesus would choose such a place and such an occasion to reveal Himself yet a third time.
It was the same, yet different. Peter and the other fishermen had returned to what had once been their trade, their livelihood, once again they had suffered through a disappointing and fruitless night of fishing, and once again, they came into a surprising and miraculous draught of fish. But this time, there was a stranger on the shore, waiting for them and beckoning to them. And, furthermore, there was a breakfast awaiting them, courtesy of this self-same stranger. And who was this stranger? It was none other than Jesus, but they had not recognized Him.
For me then, this begs a question: was the resurrected Jesus somehow different? Neither Mary Magdalene, nor the two disciples on the Emmaus Road, nor these disciples here at the Sea of Galilee had recognized Him right off the bat. And surely, He was different at least in some ways, for He was seemingly able to pass through walls when the doors were locked and barred (John 20:19, 26). Even the final state of the burial clothes, not being unwrapped but still in their original form, would testify to the fact that there was now something different about Him.
What this says to me is that the risen Lord is still here, still present and available for us, but transformed and even more so. Jesus still meets us where we are, yes, in our old familiar places and faces, but in our new situations, our less comforting and comfortable ones, as well. And so, we can always go to Him for help, no matter what the situation. Amen.
Forward notes: “He said to them, ‘Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea” (verses 6-7).
“For whatever reason, the disciples do not recognize Jesus. After they fail to find any fish, a seeming stranger tells them to try again and that it will work this time. And it does. One of the disciples thinks, Wait, this feels really familiar. They connect this living moment to the past experience when Peter and Andrew were called to be disciples, fisher of men. They realize this is Jesus.
“I remember one of my first experiences in a church. I was feeling sad and lonely. As I closed my eyes and prayed, I felt a hand on my back. The stranger next to me was praying with me. Whenever I feel sad or lonely or lost, it helps to remember the familiar story of that hand on my back—a moment when Jesus showed up in my life story.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Think of a time when you realized in retrospect that you saw Jesus. Say a word of thanks.”