“And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord.” John 21:6-7a KJV
The above scripture is an occurrence that took place after Jesus was resurrected from the dead. He was seen by numerous people over a course of forty days. During that time, most doubted the validity of who He was. They often thought He was a ghost. To disprove them, He ate food in their presence, as if He wanted to give them full assurance to believe He indeed had risen from the dead. This scripture is an indication of His assurance.
Let me set the scene.
He (Jesus) yells from the shore telling them cast their nets to the right side of the boat. They hadn’t a clue at this point who’s voice this was. At this point in the night, their nets were empty. They did as the man on the shore instructed them to do. To their surprise, the net was full. Overflowing as a matter of fact. So much so, they were unable to draw it in.
John (the disciple Jesus loved) had a light bulb moment. He realized, immediately Who it was on the shoreline. It was Jesus.
How did he know that?
If you read Luke 5:1-11, one of the very first interactions they had with Jesus was a strikingly similar scenario. Jesus, also instructs them to cast their net on the right side of the ship. They were doubtful because they hadn’t caught any fish all day. Yet, to their surprise, the net was full.
He did it before, He did it again.
After the resurrection, Jesus knew they were struggling. He knew the anguish of their questioning hearts. He heard the cries of their hearts for a renewing of faith. A confirmation. Not just a coincidence, but a divine intervention. What did He do? He performed the same miracle for them, yet again. The disciples realized it was Him as a result of the identical supernatural occurrence that took place. They knew, without a shadow of doubt that only He could fill their nets to the point of overflowing, not once, but twice.
I’ve seen this happen in my own life.
While we were fostering to adopt our two youngest daughters. God performed a miracle right in front of my very eyes. His protection was visible over one of the girls. I tirelessly worked to line out ways to protect her with the best of my ability. In my strength, nothing seemed to happen. Nothing changed. When God finally interceded, the protection immediately occurred. It happened in a way I knew it was Him without question.
Months went by. As the time passed, the miracle in His protection wore off on my soul somewhat. I had forgotten the miracle of that moment. The realization I had in knowing, that was no coincidence. That was Jesus. They say, “Time heals all wounds.” I guess that may be so. But in regards to this, “Time can actually dampen the magnitude of the miracle.”
Again, we were faced with a mirroring scenario. A frightening similar circumstance that started to shake my faith. I found myself doubting His faithfulness. I failed to see Him move on our behalf. I was wavering like a leaf falling from a branch on a cool fall day. Questions flooded my mind, “He did it before, but will He’ll do it again?” Sure enough, at the last minute, before it was too late, and at the same time perfectly timed by a perfect God; He interceded. He worked it out in our behalf, in the exact same way as He did before .
He did it before, He’ll do it again.
Why did He intervene for us not once, but twice? I have my guesses. But I probably will never know fully as to why. In our case (foster care), He knows what is best for everyone involved. That probably played a major role in His interventions. However, I also think that sometimes He knows that our faith needs a renewing. He knows our doubts in our minds. Hearing us question the fact that we know He did it once but there is no way He’ll do it again, yet for some reason, He does.
It’s in that “again” moment, change takes place. When He did it again, it completely and fully renewed my faith. Fulfilling my knowledge in knowing nothing I do will ever work, need I even try. The peace that stemmed from that point forward has been an undeniable comfort through some dark times. As I read the scripture texts above, I can’t help but see Jesus giving them this same confirmation and peace by easing the doubts of their weary souls.
If you’ve seen the hand of God intervene in your life once. But you find yourself questioning if He will do it again? Sister, He can do it again- fully, completely, the same way as He did before. Hold on to that hope today- He did it before, He’ll do it again.
Love you friends,
Erika
