He loves you like a child . . .

From the Gospel for Friday of the Octave of Easter:    (John 21:1-14)

Several of the apostles were out fishing, but they caught nothing. Jesus was standing on the shore near a charcoal fire. He called out to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”

I stop there in my reading and reflect on the way Jesus addresses the men who, we remember were strong and probably tough. Jesus cuts through all that and gets to the heart of things: “Children.”

Children.

Child of God.

Picture yourself being called in this way. Lay down your adult-ness for a bit and be a child. Imagine Jesus loving that child, embracing you, blessing you, caring about you, tending to your needs in very ordinary ways. (He said to them: Come, have breakfast.)

The men bring him their fish, and he grills the fish for them. Jesus himself is feeding you. Jesus himself prepares for you to be nourished, not by theological intensity nor by rules and regulations, but by bread and fish—the most basic and favored meal in that place and at that time.

No other words need to be spoken. The next time you partake of any food, picture Jesus feeding you that food because it is something you need. Jesus caring for your child.

And then pray that He might feed all the children of the world who are hungry and needy. And, if you can, find a way to help in some small grateful way.

But for now, for this moment of reflection, note that you are the child and you are being taken care of, and your hunger is being satisfied. Abundantly, for the men’s nets hauled in 153 large fish.

No one knows for sure why the number of fish is specified: 153. It is a mystery for now. The time will come when we will understand. But not now.

I’ll close with a thought from Theophane the Recluse in The Art of Prayer:

Our whole object is to acquire the habit of keeping our attention always on the Lord, who is omnipresent and sees everything, who desires the salvation of all of us and is ready to help us toward it. (p. 122)

This reflection was inspired by the writing of Kathy Coffey, appearing in Give Us This Day for April, pp. 22-23.