Daily Verse
Tuesday, June 9, 2026
Discipleship
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Tuesday's Reflection
Luke 5:11 — And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.
Simon Peter, James, and John had been fishing all night and caught nothing. They were tired, washing their nets at the edge of the water when Jesus arrived and asked to use one of their boats as a platform to teach the crowd. When He finished, He told Simon to put out into deep water and let down the nets. Simon said they had worked all night and caught nothing — but at Your word, I will. They let down the nets and pulled in so many fish that the nets began to break. They had to signal the other boat to come help, and both boats were so full they began to sink.
Simon Peter's response to the miracle was not what you might expect. He did not celebrate. He fell at Jesus' feet and said: depart from me, for I am a sinful man. Standing in a boat full of fish, he was suddenly more aware of his own inadequacy than of the abundance around him. And Jesus said simply: do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men. When they brought the boats to shore, they left everything and followed Him. Not when the nets were empty. When they were overflowing. They walked away from the best day of their professional lives to follow a teacher they had only just met.
That detail is important. Discipleship did not begin when things were going badly and they had nothing to lose. It began at the moment of greatest abundance, when following Jesus cost them something tangible. That is always the real test of discipleship — not whether we are willing to follow when life is difficult and Jesus seems like the only option, but whether we are willing to follow when life is good and following still requires leaving something behind.
Prayer: Lord, give us the disciples' courage — to leave the full nets when You call, not just the empty ones. Whatever we are holding onto more tightly than we hold onto You, show us, and give us the grace to let it go. Amen.