There’s something about the shoreline in the early morning that puts failure into perspective. The waves don’t stop rolling in because the tide was rough yesterday. The seagulls don’t skip breakfast because last night’s storm knocked them around. Nature keeps moving forward. And yet, as leaders, when we stumble, we often freeze—feeling like our failures disqualify us from continuing.
If you’ve ever sat at your desk with a pit in your stomach, wondering if you’ve let your team down, or if the setback in front of you proves you weren’t cut out for leadership, you’re not alone. I’ve been there too.
My Own Season of Setback
A few years ago, I launched what I believed would be my defining project. I had poured months of planning, late nights, and nearly every ounce of energy into it. The vision was bold, the strategy carefully mapped, and the team behind me was eager. Everything seemed aligned.
But as the months unfolded, so did the unraveling. The numbers didn’t add up. The timelines slipped. Stakeholders grew impatient. One day, after yet another meeting filled with questions I couldn’t answer, I walked out with a sinking realization: this wasn’t going to succeed.
I remember sitting in my car, hands gripping the steering wheel, feeling like the weight of disappointment was too heavy to carry. I questioned my abilities, my decisions, even my calling as a leader. Had I wasted everyone’s time? Was I finished?
A Lesson from the Shore
It was during that season that the story from John 21 came alive for me. After Jesus’ resurrection, His disciples – men who had spent years learning at His feet – were adrift. Peter, in particular, carried the sting of failure. He had denied even knowing Jesus three times. Imagine the shame. Imagine leading your team one day with bold confidence, only to collapse under pressure the next.
And what did Peter do? He went back to what he knew: fishing. But even there, he failed—casting nets all night and catching nothing.
Then, as the dawn broke, a voice called from the shore: “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” When they answered no, Jesus directed them to cast the net on the right side. The catch was overwhelming. And when Peter realized it was Jesus, he didn’t wait—he dove into the water and swam to Him.
Here’s the part that always stops me: Jesus didn’t meet Peter with a lecture, a list of mistakes, or a reminder of his failure. Instead, He met him with breakfast. John 21:12 says, “Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’”
It was at that seaside breakfast that Jesus restored Peter, giving him a fresh mission: “Feed my sheep.”
Failure Isn’t Final
That story reminded me that failure doesn’t end your calling—it can actually prepare you for it. Just like Peter, I had to learn that leadership is not about flawless execution. It’s about resilience, humility, and being willing to meet Jesus on the shore after the nets have come up empty.
The truth is, failure forms us. It humbles us, strips away illusions of control, and brings us face-to-face with grace. In the same way the tide shapes the shoreline, setbacks shape our character.
For me, that failed project became one of the greatest teachers of my life. It taught me how to listen more deeply, how to plan with flexibility, and how to lead from a place of empathy rather than pride. In time, it opened doors to new opportunities I never would have seen if the first plan had succeeded.
Encouragement for Leaders Today
If you feel like you’ve failed, I want you to picture that scene in John 21. The risen Christ standing by a charcoal fire, inviting weary, defeated fishermen to sit down and eat. No condemnation. No rejection. Just an invitation to begin again.
That’s what leadership looks like after failure. Not the absence of mistakes, but the presence of grace. Not disqualification, but redirection.
So let me say this to you: your failure is not the end. It may, in fact, be the very thing God uses to reshape you for greater influence and deeper impact. Breakfast by the sea was not the end of Peter’s story—it was the beginning of his mission to lead the early church.
A New Day, A New Start
The sun rises, the waves keep rolling, and God’s mercies are new every morning. If the shoreline teaches us anything, it’s that no storm has the final word. Leadership, like the tide, comes in cycles of rising, receding, and returning.
So take a breath. Sit with the lesson. Accept the grace. And when the time comes, pick up your nets again—not because you are perfect, but because you are called.
Breakfast by the sea isn’t just a story from Scripture. It’s a reminder that every leader, no matter how deep the failure, can rise to a new day.
