WEBVTT 00:00:08.529 --> 00:00:12.529 Welcome to the Spray United Methodist Church podcast. 00:00:13.169 --> 00:00:17.809 My name is Hoyt, and I'm so glad you're here with me today. 00:00:19.730 --> 00:00:25.570 There is a quiet moment in the Gospel of John that has always felt sacred to me. 00:00:27.969 --> 00:00:40.210 It happens after the resurrection, after the fear, after the failure, and after the long night of doubt. 00:00:41.170 --> 00:00:49.410 The disciples are back on the water, back to fishing, back to what they knew before everything changed. 00:00:51.410 --> 00:00:55.250 And Jesus, he meets them there. 00:00:56.690 --> 00:01:02.850 Not with thunder, not with correction, not with disappointment. 00:01:03.650 --> 00:01:16.210 He meets them with breakfast, a charcoal fire, bread, fish, and the simple invitation. 00:01:17.329 --> 00:01:18.609 Come and eat. 00:01:20.530 --> 00:01:26.370 I love this moment because it shows the heart of Jesus in a way nothing else quite does. 00:01:27.650 --> 00:01:39.409 The risen Savior of the world standing on a quiet shoreline, cooking breakfast for tired, confused, imperfect friends. 00:01:40.530 --> 00:01:48.769 No lecture, no shame, just presence, just love. 00:01:51.329 --> 00:01:57.250 And if I'm honest, this scene feels very close to my own life. 00:01:58.530 --> 00:02:17.810 There have been seasons where I felt like I had failed God, seasons where doubt crept in, seasons where sickness, exhaustion, and long stays in the dialogis chair made everything feel small and fragile. 00:02:20.370 --> 00:02:24.289 And in those moments, I didn't need a sermon. 00:02:25.009 --> 00:02:34.689 I needed a Savior who would meet me gently, quietly, personally. 00:02:36.050 --> 00:02:42.530 A Savior who would say, Hoyt, come sit down, rest. 00:02:43.810 --> 00:02:45.170 You're still mine. 00:02:47.330 --> 00:02:50.370 That's what breakfast on the beach really is. 00:02:51.090 --> 00:02:53.729 It's restoration without humiliation. 00:02:55.009 --> 00:02:57.650 It's forgiveness without a speech. 00:02:58.449 --> 00:03:02.129 It's love that has nothing left to prove. 00:03:04.849 --> 00:03:08.770 Because Jesus already proved everything on the cross. 00:03:10.210 --> 00:03:21.729 Sometimes we think we have to climb our way back to God, fix ourselves, explain ourselves, earn our way to the shoreline. 00:03:23.729 --> 00:03:26.449 But the gospel tells a different story. 00:03:26.930 --> 00:03:37.330 Jesus is already there, fire already burning, meal already prepared, grace already given. 00:03:40.370 --> 00:03:45.009 All that's left is to come and eat. 00:03:45.890 --> 00:03:50.770 And maybe today that invitation is for you too. 00:03:52.610 --> 00:03:54.289 Maybe you're tired. 00:03:55.009 --> 00:03:57.409 Maybe you feel like you failed. 00:03:58.449 --> 00:04:01.969 Maybe you're just quietly wondering if you still belong. 00:04:03.330 --> 00:04:06.530 Listen closely to the shoreline of your soul. 00:04:08.050 --> 00:04:11.729 You might hear him say, Come and eat. 00:04:13.009 --> 00:04:21.009 No conditions, no shame, no distance, just Jesus. 00:04:22.289 --> 00:04:25.810 And that is enough. 00:04:27.649 --> 00:04:35.569 Sometimes I wonder how many quiet breakfasts Jesus has prepared in my life that I almost missed. 00:04:37.170 --> 00:04:47.490 Moments where nothing dramatic happened, no thunder, no great revelation, just a quiet sense that I was not alone. 00:04:50.209 --> 00:05:02.290 Sitting in a dialysis chair, watching the sun come through a window, feeling tired in my body, estrangely peaceful in my soul. 00:05:03.569 --> 00:05:05.730 Those are shoreline moments. 00:05:07.410 --> 00:05:10.769 Places where Jesus doesn't explain everything. 00:05:12.449 --> 00:05:14.050 He simply stays. 00:05:16.610 --> 00:05:33.410 And I'm learning that His presence is the miracle, not the fixing, not the changing, not the removing of hardships, just Him being there. 00:05:35.569 --> 00:05:38.610 Maybe that's what restoration really looks like. 00:05:39.410 --> 00:05:47.250 Not going back to who we were before the storm, but discovering He never left us in it. 00:05:48.930 --> 00:05:57.970 And if that's true, then even the hardest seasons of life are still held inside His mercy. 00:06:01.410 --> 00:06:05.329 Even here there is breakfast on the beach. 00:06:06.610 --> 00:06:10.530 Even here there is peace. 00:06:11.810 --> 00:06:13.170 Let's pray. 00:06:14.370 --> 00:06:18.689 Lord Jesus, thank you for meeting us in quiet places. 00:06:20.530 --> 00:06:27.410 Thank you for your shoreline moments where you do not condemn us, but welcome us. 00:06:29.089 --> 00:06:34.050 For every tired heart listening today, prepare a place of rest. 00:06:35.250 --> 00:06:41.170 For every soul that feels far away, let them hear you gentle invitation. 00:06:42.449 --> 00:06:44.370 Come and eat. 00:06:46.370 --> 00:06:50.610 Teach us to trust that your presence is enough. 00:06:51.410 --> 00:06:57.490 Your grace is enough, and your love will never let us go. 00:06:59.250 --> 00:07:08.530 We give you our failures, our doubts, our sickness, and our long nights. 00:07:09.970 --> 00:07:17.970 And we receive instead your peace in your holy name, Jesus. 00:07:18.610 --> 00:07:19.250 Amen. 00:07:21.889 --> 00:07:26.209 Thank you for joining me on the Spray United Methodist Church podcast. 00:07:26.850 --> 00:07:41.410 If you do not have a church home, we invite you to worship with us at Spray United Methodist Church, located at eight oh three Morgan Road in Eden, North Carolina. 00:07:42.449 --> 00:07:49.810 We are a loving family who loves God and loves people, all people. 00:07:51.490 --> 00:07:55.490 And until next time, peace be with you.