Have you ever read a Bible verse and thought, ...okay? Like... that can’t be it. Because John 21:3 feels almost offensively uneventful at first. Peter says, “I am going fishing.” The other disciples answer, “We will go with you.” End scene. No miracle. No angel. No sermon. Just... fishing. Honestly? If I were ranking Bible verses as “most likely to accidentally skip over,” this one would’ve been fighting for first place.

Except... okay no. Because this verse is actually INSANE once you sit in it for more than five seconds. Like imagine the emotional whiplash of this moment. Jesus had just been crucified. The sky literally went dark. The earth shook. The disciples watched the Son of God beaten, mocked, crucified, buried… and then suddenly the silence after. No more footsteps. No more sermons. No more campfire conversations after miracles. Just grief. Shock. Confusion. The unbearable weight of “what now?”

And Peter? Oh, Peter would have been absolutely unraveling. Because this wasn’t just grief for him. This was shame with a pulse. This was the same Peter who swore with his WHOLE heart that he would never betray Jesus. “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away” (Matthew 26:33). Translation: “Couldn’t be me.” And then hours later? He denied even KNOWING Jesus. Three times. THREE. By the third denial, Scripture says the rooster crowed and Peter “went out and wept bitterly” (Matthew 26:75). Not soft little cinematic tears. This was full-body grief. The kind that sits in your throat and makes you want to disappear.

And honestly? I think that’s what makes this story hit so hard. Because Peter doesn’t respond to failure by becoming rebellious. He responds by becoming familiar. He goes back. Back to fishing (John 21:3). Back to what he knew. Back to what existed before Jesus disrupted his life. And babe… if we’re being honest? That is humanity in one sentence.

The second life feels painful, uncertain, spiritually stretching, awkward, lonely, or disappointing, we start romanticizing old versions of ourselves. Old habits suddenly look comforting. Old mindsets suddenly feel safer. Old validation cycles start calling our names again. Because familiar feels easier than faith when you’re hurting.

Which is why I have always lowkey cringed at the phrase “back to school.” Because spiritually? God has never been in the business of calling His people backward. Scripture is a story of God constantly calling people OUT. Out of bondage. Out of comfort. Out of old identities. Out of small living. Jesus literally looked at ordinary fishermen and said, “Follow me” (Matthew 4:19). Not “stay where you are.” Not “return to what’s comfortable.” Follow Me. Forward. Forward into transformation. Forward into holiness. Forward into becoming. 

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing” (Isaiah 43:18–19). But Peter, in his shame, drifted backward toward what felt safe. And here’s the part that absolutely wrecks me every single time: He didn’t drift backward alone. The other disciples got up and went with him. THAT is leadership. Not platform leadership. Not microphone leadership. Directional leadership. Because leadership is influence. And influence multiplies direction. Peter carried weight. Presence. People moved when Peter moved. Which means when Peter drifted backward into familiarity, other people drifted with him.

Because isn’t that literally what happens everywhere now too? One person decides conviction is embarrassing and suddenly the whole group starts acting “too cool” to care about God. One person compromises and everybody else quietly lowers the standard too. One viral opinion and suddenly the internet develops the same personality overnight. Humans have ALWAYS followed crowds. It’s our nature. Which is exactly why we need Jesus so desperately. Because left to ourselves, we drift backward constantly. Toward comfort. Toward compromise. Toward whatever requires the least surrender. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Not some people. ALL people. Peter’s story is proof that even passionate people can drift when shame starts driving. But THIS is why the Gospel is breathtaking: Jesus comes back for Peter.

Not with humiliation. Not with “I told you so.” Not with rejection. With restoration. Jesus meets Peter on the shore and calls him FORWARD again. And the same Peter who once led people backward in fear becomes the Peter who later stands in Acts 2 overflowing with Holy Spirit power, boldly leading thousands toward Christ. That transformation did not happen because Peter suddenly became mentally stronger or more disciplined. It happened because the Holy Spirit changed him from the inside out. Because walking different is not human nature. It’s Holy Spirit nature. Which means this school year? You do not have to drift backward into old insecurity, old gossip habits, old approval addiction, old compromise, old versions of yourself just because everybody else is doing it. You do not have to follow the crowd simply because the crowd is loud. You were called FORWARD. Forward into conviction. Forward into courage. Forward into holiness. Forward into becoming the kind of girl who actually reflects Jesus when nobody else is.

So before this school year starts speeding up, ask yourself honestly:

Who’s influencing my direction? And where am I leading other people? Because this generation does not need more girls drifting backward into comfort together. It needs girls brave enough to walk different first.