in their own wilderness, seeking the Promised Land.
A snake slithers past, its tongue flicking at the dry desert air. Jesus recoils.
The serpent is thick and powerful, poised to coil and strike in an instant.
Jesus bends down carefully and selects a large rock. He grasps it firmly in his fist. He stands, and as he does, a shadow appears.
"If you are the Son of God," Satan speaks from the shadow, "tell the stones to become bread."
"Man shall not live by bread alone," Jesus calmly informs Satan, "but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."
Satan turns away in disgust and simply vanishes.
Jesus dreams that he stands atop the roof of the great temple in Jerusalem.
Soon, the shadow of Satan stands next to him once again. "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down so that angels can save you."
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"Do not put the Lord your God to the test," Jesus warns Satan.
Jesus turns away from the edge. He dislodges a roof tile, which plummets to the cobbled courtyard below and shatters into a hundred pieces.
Now he awakes from the dream to find himself standing atop a mountain cliff. The desert stretches out far below him, as vast and wide as the eye can see, seemingly stretching to infinity. The shadow is next to him. "I will give you the whole world," promises Satan, "if you will bow down and worship me." The shadow extends his hand for Jesus to kneel down and kiss.
Jesus pushes it away. "Get away from me, Satan. It is written, 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.' " The Spirit of the Lord has come upon Jesus. He defiantly turns his back on Satan.
Rugged, upright, and sure, he walks out of the desert in the power of the Spirit to begin his mission. A single venomous snake slithers back into a hole in the ground.
Three fishermen finish a long night of trying to fill their nets. They have nothing to show for it. As they 137 guide their boats onto the sandy beach, a distant figure can be seen walking their way. Peter notices him first.
"Who's that?" he says in a gruff tone.
"John says he is the Messiah," his brother Andrew responds.
"Oh, really? Can he teach you to find fish?"
"Yes, I can," Jesus replies.
Before Peter can stop him, Jesus walks over to his boat, takes hold of the hull, and shoves it back out into the water.
"Hey!" Peter barks. "What do you think you're doing? That's my boat. And you're not allowed to launch it all by yourself."
"You'd better help me, then," Jesus calmly replies.
Peter runs into the water and grabs the hull. But Jesus won't be stopped. He looks Peter in the eye and keeps pushing the boat out into the Sea of Galilee. Something in Peter's gut tells him to do as Jesus orders. He stops trying to pull the boat back toward shore and starts shoving it out to sea.
When the water is waist deep, he pulls himself up into the boat. Jesus climbs aboard, too.
"What are we doing here?" Peter asks.
"Fishing."
Peter stares into those eyes one more time. "There are no fish out here."
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"Peter," says Jesus, "I can show you where to find fish. What have you got to lose?"
Peter reaches for his nets, preparing to cast.
Jesus shakes his head. "Go farther," he commands.
Peter looks at him. "You've never fished here. So listen when I tell you--there are no fish out there at this time of day."
"Please."
So Peter guides his boat into deeper waters.
"Blessed are they who hunger after righteousness," Jesus says. "For they shall be filled."
"Who are you?" Peter demands. "Why are you here?"
"Ask and it will be given to you; look and you will find."
What follows is a day of fishing unlike any other in Peter's life. Thousands of fish fill his nets. His shoulders burn from the strain of pulling them all into the boat. His nets begin to tear. But Peter casts again and again and again, and every time the nets come back full. Other boats soon set out from the shore as Peter is forced to call for help.
As the day ends, Peter collapses atop the pile of fish filling the hold. "How did this happen?" he asks Jesus. He can feel a tear welling in his eye.
Something tells him that the direction of his life has just changed.
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Jesus does not respond.
"Teacher, I am a sinner," Peter tells Jesus. "I am not a seeker, just a mere fisherman."
"So follow me," Jesus finally