Resetting the Baseline

Psalm 89:1-18 • Psalm 89:19-52
Hosea 2:14-23 • Acts 20:17-38 • Luke 5:1-11

When Jesus tells Peter, James, and John to let down their nets—against their better judgement—and they're rewarded with more fish than they can take in, I thought about one thing: shifting baseline syndrome of fisheries. Scientist Daniel Pauly used this concept to describe the way fisheries assess changes in fish populations relative to an improperly recent baseline, rather than a true baseline from before humans began commercial fishing operations. Because of overfishing, many wild fish populations have collapsed, and what may appear to be an abundant catch now would’ve been paltry 50-100 years ago. With shifting baseline syndrome we don’t see the bigger picture, only how the picture changed since we’ve been paying attention.

Peter, James, and John’s response to Jesus is based on hard-won experience. “We went out and didn’t catch anything! There’s no reason we should expect anything different now.” Their doubt and cynicism are fully rational, but they do not see the irrationality of God’s working before them. Jesus resets the baseline. He restores the lake to an abundance the fishermen had never seen or imagined possible. Waters that were empty become full; that which was dead comes back to life; our broken relationships with the world, with each other, and with God are repaired. But here’s the “catch” for them and for us: to realize this reset, renewal, and restoration you have to leave everything to follow Jesus.

Written by Kathryn Haydon

Kathryn studies rice quality and disease as a PhD candidate in Plant Science at the University of Arkansas and can’t wait to sing in the St. Paul’s choir again when we can all be safe together.