People who have been a part of church for a long time have heard all the stories of the Resurrection many times over. Yet, here we are again at Easter remembering the story again. Since the audio was not recorded for the sermon here’s the summary version, pictures included.
Think for a moment about the character of Peter. By all accounts, he is a normal person. Peter, (represented here by the stick figure) thinks his life is going in a certain direction. He thinks he’s going to be a fisherman and for a man in his time, the life of a fisherman is pretty predictable: fish, eat, sleep until you die. It’s pretty predictable.
But then something comes and interrupts this trajectory. It’s an encounter with Jesus on the lakeshore.
This encounter means that he can no longer continue on the path that he thought he was on.
Now, with Jesus, they head off on a completely different tact then Peter ever would have dreamed of. Or, maybe it’s the stuff his wildest dreams are made of.
I can only imagine life is pretty amazing following Jesus around. Amazing might be an understatement. Mind-blowing? Earth shattering? As they approach Jerusalem again with the parade I can only imagine what is going through Peter’s mind. This is it, he thinks to himself, this is where we change everything! Except everything falls apart. A betrayal, a sell-out, a crucifixion.
The path Peter imagines is gone. They no longer continue like he once thought they might.
What is Peter to do? To use a phrase from Green Day, he’s walking boulevard of broken Dreams. He does the only thing he knows how to do. Peter goes back fishing and sets a new course for his life. It looks like he will live his life being a fisherman – eat, sleep, fish, repeat. This trajectory is not the same one as before because his life is different after his experiences, and after his betrayal, so it is different, but nonetheless, he’s on a path again.
Until there is a moment called the resurrection.
There is this beautiful moment of poetry as Jesus forgives Peter and says to him again, follow me. That trajectory of fishing for fish? It’s no longer, possible anymore.
Off they go again. There have been many “zigs” in Peter life and now the ressureciton causes another, unexpected “zag.”
Do you see some similarities in your life?
Maybe you thought your life was very predictable. You were headed off in a certain direction whatever that was for you: a job you wanted, a family that seemed stable, a faith that you thought was unshakable.
But then something interrupted the trajectory of your life. It might have been a death, a surprise, a failure. You know what that was.
This encounter means that you could no longer continue on the path you thought you were on.
Then, you were forced to rethink the story of your life and head off on a completely different tact then you ever would have dreamed of.
And you think to yourself, “This is it, this is where my life is heading now.”
Until that path too is changed, interrupted and broken; maybe it’s a diagnosis, maybe you are burnt out, or maybe you come to the realization that you are very unhappy.
You realize, again, you cannot continue on the path you set out for yourself anymore.
Until there is a moment called the resurrection.
Maybe your moment of resurrection is not as poetic as Jesus on a lake shore. Maybe it’s a chance to forgive, maybe it’s the realization that you are supposed to be going somewhere else. In this moment, you find that there is life, after all you had hoped for, and worked for, falls away.
For as many “zigs” as you have if your life, may you experience as many “zags” of the resurrection.