Swimming in Deep Water

Sunday, July 19, 2026

Arnav

LGBTQIA+ Person of Faith

Quote

“Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”

~Luke 5:4 (NRSV)

Devotion

Peter had been fishing all night and caught nothing. He was tired, his nets were empty, and he was ready to call it quits. Then Jesus shows up and tells him to try again, but this time, to go deeper.

I imagine Peter’s skepticism. He was the professional here. He knew these waters. He’d already tried everything. And now this carpenter is giving him fishing advice? But something made him say yes to the deeper water. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was desperation. Maybe it was the sense that playing it safe had stopped working.

There’s something about summer. Maybe it’s the heat, maybe it’s the way Pride Month lingers in our memories well after June is over; whatever it is it makes me think about depth. About what it means to stop skimming the surface of our lives and actually dive in. For a long time, I lived in the shallow end. I stayed where it was safe, where I could still touch the bottom, where I could control the outcome. I performed the version of myself that other people wanted to see, that they could handle without complaint.

But there’s no catch in the shallow water. The real abundance, the kind that fills the nets to breaking, only comes when we’re willing to risk the depths. When we stop performing and start being. When we let ourselves want what we actually want, love who we actually love, pray the prayers that are really in our hearts instead of wanting, loving, and praying in the ways we’ve been taught and the ways others expect us to want, love, and pray.

Going deeper is terrifying. You can’t see the bottom. You lose your footing. Yet that’s also where you find out what you’re actually made of and where you discover that God meets you in the depths, not just the shallows.

Reflection

1.    What parts of your life or identity have you been keeping in the “shallow water?”

2.    What might it look like for you to “put out into the deep water” in your relationships, your faith, and your sense of self?

3.    What fears or past disappointments keep you from risking the deeper waters?

Action

Identify one area where you’ve been playing it safe, maybe in a relationship, a creative pursuit, or a conversation you’ve been avoiding. Take one concrete step toward going deeper this week. It doesn’t have to be dramatic; it just has to be honest. Write the email. Have the conversation. Try the thing you’ve been too scared to try.