JESUS HELPS CATCH FISH

Transcription

1 Lesson 35 JESUS HELPS CATCH FISH Summary of Today s Story The disciples decide to go fishing, to carry on with their daily work. But after fishing all night, they catch nothing. Someone on the shore tells them where to cast their nets, and their nets are full. Peter recognizes his Lord and jumps into the sea to meet Jesus. On the shore, Jesus shares breakfast with his friends. When Jesus and Peter sit down to talk, Jesus asks Peter three times, Do you love me? Peter answers three times, Yes, Lord, I love you. Jesus then tells him, Feed my sheep. Where You ll Find Today s Story In the Bible We recommend the New Revised Standard Version Bible. John 21:1-19 In Children s Bibles If you plan to use a children s Bible for storytelling, write the page numbers of today s story in the space below. In Our Sunday Lectionary Today s story is told in church on the following Sunday: Years A, B, C: Friday of Easter Week June 29, St. Peter and St. Paul (RCL) Year C: Third Sunday of Easter

2 2 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Weaving Our Story with the Biblical Story The men have gone back to their daily life and work as it was before they had met and been so changed by Jesus. Life is once again the same...or is it? It makes sense that their lives should continue as before, at least on the outside. God means for us to be part of the world. Christ means to work in us as we live our normal everyday lives. He did not expect that we should stay on the mountaintop with him always. And what does Jesus say to his friends? He tells them how to catch fish! At first, they do not know who this man is, for they like us often do not expect to see God in everyday activities and frustrations. But that is where he waits for us. The Episcopal Thread Anglicanism is an incarnate faith. That is, Anglicans believe God is present in all things and in our daily life and time. This is a legacy of our Celtic Christian heritage, which honored God in everyday life and work, and in even the littlest parts of our life. Like our Celtic forbears, we see God not just in worship but also in daily life and even in very ordinary chores. Anglicanism is also a very practical faith. It is not enough just to believe; it is essential that we put our belief into action. It is not enough just to say I love you, Jesus. That love must be translated into action: And because I love you, I will feed your sheep. Thus, Episcopalians tend to have a deep commitment to outreach and social justice to helping the poor, to feeding God s sheep wherever they are and whatever their need.

3 3 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Gathering As the children enter the room, greet them and engage them in a simple activity that relates to today s lesson. A coloring page, a puzzle sheet, or simple biblical maze are good quiet activities. For a simple craft that can be used during storytelling time, have children make puppets of Jesus and the disciples. See page 9 at the end of this lesson for instructions. On page 10 there are pictures of Jesus, the disciples, the boat, and the net of fish, which children can color and cut out. At the storytelling time, they can then use these pictures to act out the scenes while you tell the story. Older children will appreciate a brief period for visiting with each other before the lesson begins. Telling the Story Read aloud today s story from a children s Bible, showing the pictures, tell the story in your own words, or read from the version of the story we provide, found on pages 7-8. You may use dramatic motions or voice inflections to bring out the intensity of these meetings with Jesus. Notice the excitement of Peter, and also his great humility and the poignancy of his talk with Jesus. If children made puppets or cut out story figures during the gathering time, have them dramatize the story themselves while you tell it. Let the children hear the story without analyzing it for them or discussing it. For now, simply let the story sink into their minds and hearts. Later, while having snacks, you can bring up the story again and invite the children to talk about it and explore its message. After all the children have arrived and had a few minutes of activity or fellowship time, gather them together and say a simple opening prayer. Choose a prayer from the Prayer Book, say your own prayer, or pray the following: Lord God, we give you thanks for your church, and for the time that we have together in your church. We ask you to bless us as we learn your story, and to take care of those of us who are not here today. Help us to learn more of your love for us, and to see our love for each other today. We pray all this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

4 4 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Prayer Set up a small worship center in your room. Materials: small table with a cloth to cover it 2 candles or a single large Christ candle matches Bible cross optional: flowers (real, artificial or handmade by the children) Have the children set up a simple altar with the materials listed above. Invite them to place on the altar any drawings or crafts that they created during Gathering time. Then light the candles. Read a verse from today s scripture from a Bible so that the children connect the story they heard with the Bible, which is the word of God. If working mainly with older children, you might expand the reading to several verses. Suggestions for the reading: For younger children: John 21:12-13 For older children: John 20:12-14 Help familiarize the children with our liturgy by doing the reading as it is done in church. Read as follows: Reader: A reading from the book of John: (Read the selected passage.) Reader: The word of the Lord. Reader: The word of the Lord. Invite the children to sit in a circle and join in prayer. Say a brief prayer yourself then invite prayers from each child in the circle: Invite prayers of thanks to God for what God has done for us during the past week. They may include thanks for the beauty of nature, for guiding us in our family and friendships, for giving us the gifts of skills and abilities newly learned. Ask children if they have any prayers asking for God s help in their lives or others lives. Recognize any birthdays or other special occasions, thanking God for the opportunity to celebrate these occasions with our church family. End by praying the Lord s Prayer together. Carefully extinguish the candles. Sharing Pass out snacks and say a simple grace, such as this adaptation of the traditional Jewish blessing that the disciples would probably have prayed at the meal they were sharing: Blessed are you, O Lord God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth. Amen. This is an excellent time, while sharing a snack, to begin talking about the story that the children have just heard. Share your reactions and feelings about the story: Review what the disciples were doing at the beginning of the story and Peter s part in the story. Remember the lesson from a few weeks ago when Peter had denied his Lord three times before the crucifixion, and that he was ashamed of his own lack of courage in facing Jesus accusers.

5 5 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Why do you think Jesus repeatedly asks Peter if Peter loves him? What might Jesus mean when he says, Feed my sheep? How can we do the same as Peter? If we love Jesus, how will we show it? Activities for This Week s Session Activities: Arts, Crafts, Games, Drama, etc. After Sharing, begin an activity to supplement and enhance today s story. While the children are doing an activity, talk about the story so that they make the connection. Suggested story-related activities are provided at the end of this lesson on pages Additional activity ideas can be found on pages 3-6 in the Appendix (also downloadable) where we ve provided suggestions and directions for a variety of general activities that can be adapted to any lesson. Also included are outreach and service projects that can be done at any time. Take-Home Paper At the end of this lesson you will find a two-page take-home paper for families called Threads. Threads provides parents with a briefer version of the information on scripture and Episcopal faith found in the introduction to the lesson, as well as multiple suggestions for household activities and prayer. Parents can use Threads to continue each child s classroom experience at home throughout the week. We suggest duplicating and distributing these two pages to children and/or their parents at the end of each lesson.

6 6 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Memorization There is no biblical passage to memorize for this lesson. Weaving the Family of God As your time together draws to a close, take a few minutes to help the children summarize the story and say what they learned today by asking questions such as: Who did Jesus meet in today s story? What did the disciples do when they saw Jesus? What did Jesus and the disciples do together? What did Jesus and Peter say to each other? Encourage the children to remember key family of God ideas and words from the story, such as: love, believe, feed my sheep. Closing Prayer Before the children leave, say a closing prayer to send them into the church worship service or back to their homes with God s love and blessing. The prayer can be very simple, such as this one: Loving God, we thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, who came to live with us here on earth and teach us how to love you and to love each other. We thank you for Peter, Jesus friend, who learned a hard lesson about loving Jesus. Send us now back to our families to spread that love to our parents, our brothers and sisters, and everyone we know and see. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen. End with a dismissal used in church, such as: Let us go forth into the world, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit. The children respond: Thanks be to God!

7 John 21:1-19 Some time has passed since Jesus came to the disciples. But he never stays. He always goes away again. They will have to live without him. Things will never be the way it was in the old days, when Jesus and the 12 disciples went around the region, followed by crowds of people. Peter, Thomas, James, John, Nathanael and two other disciples are sitting around doing nothing. But that will not do, not anymore. It s time to get back to normal. So one day Peter says, I am going fishing. The others say, We ll go, too. The seven men climb into their fishing boat with their fishing nets. All day long, they fish. All night long, they fish. They catch nothing. Now it is daybreak. They still have no fish. They are ready to give up, so they start to row toward the shore. A man is standing on the beach. He shouts to them, Hey! You don t have any fish, do you? They shout back, No, we don t! We did not catch anything all day and all night! The man says, Here s what you can do. Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some fish. As soon as the net goes into the water, the fish start filling it up. In only a few minutes, the net is so heavy and so full of fish that the men can barely pull it up into the boat. After a lot of huffing and puffing, they pull the net up and over the side of the boat. As it plops into the boat, it tips the men over onto their backs. What a catch! John squints into the light and looks again at the man standing on the beach. He looks familiar, the way he is standing there watching them. He says to Peter, It is the Lord! 7 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 story

8 Peter stares at the man. Yes, it is Jesus! Peter jumps out of the boat and into the water. He can t wait to be with Jesus. But the other disciples stay in the boat, though one of them mutters, That Peter! Won t even help us row the boat and carry the fish! But they don t mind because they know how excited Peter is to see Jesus. They are excited, too. They just aren t going to jump into the sea and swim to him. The disciples drag the boat onto the beach. Jesus had made a charcoal fire. And he has fish and bread with him. Hmm, says one of the disciples. Just like the time he fed those 5,000 people with fish and bread. Here he is again, to feed us. Jesus says, Bring some of those fish to me, the ones that you just caught. Peter jumps up to help. Together, all the men bring the net full of fish. They count them: 153 fish! Way more than we can eat! Before, there was not enough and Jesus made it more. Now, there is an abundance! As they are looking at the fish, Jesus calls to them, Come and have breakfast! The disciples know that this is Jesus, their Lord. So no one dares to ask him, Who are you? But they wonder. They wonder, until Jesus takes the bread and gives it to them, and then takes the fish and gives it to them. Now they know. He always feeds them like this. 8 Lesson 35 Jesus Helps Catch Fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 STORY CONt.

9 Children make a picture of the disciples catching fish. Materials: netting (from fabric stores) scissors fish-shaped snack crackers blue construction paper crayons glue stapler boat picture (p. 10) Fishing Scene for Preschool Preparation: Make a copy of the boat picture for each child. Cut off the bottom identifying text. Directions: Invite each child to make a fishing scene as follows: 1. Color the boat picture. Glue this picture onto a sheet of blue paper. 2. Cut a small piece of netting around 5"-6" in diameter. It can also be cut square. 3. Place a few goldfish crackers in the center of the netting. Gather it up and staple the ends to the picture, next to the boat. 9 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

10 10 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft cont.

11 Stick Puppets for Preschool, Primary Children make stick puppets of Jesus, the disciples, their boat and fish to use during storytelling time. Materials: puppet pictures (p. 12) craft sticks glue or tape scissors crayons Preparation: Make a copy of the puppet pictures for each child, preferably on card stock or other heavy paper. Directions: Invite each child to make a set of puppets as follows: 1. Color the pictures and cut them out. 2. Glue the pictures to craft sticks. Variation: Copy the figures onto card stock paper and glue magnets to the back, or use as-is in the storytelling. 11 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

12 12 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft cont.

13 Paper-Plate Fish for Preschool, Primary Children make a paper fish from a paper plate and decorate it. Materials: white crimped paper plate scissors markers glitter or glitter glue googly eyes stapler Directions: Invite each child to make a as follows: 1. Cut a triangle out of the paper plate, around 1 /5 of the plate. An adult will need to do this for the children. 2. Help children staple the triangle to the other end of the plate, making the fish s tail. 3. Show the children where to glue a googly eye to the fish, above the mouth formed by the cut-out piece. 4. Use markers to color the fish. 5. Use glitter or glitter glue to make beautiful scales on the fish. 13 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

14 Fish Wreath for Preschool, Primary Children make a wreath out of fish shapes and a paper plate. Materials: fish pattern (p. 15) various colors of foam sheets or posterboard for the fish (foam will look more realistic, especially if you use gray foam) 9" Styrofoam paper plate thin blue ribbon blue pipe cleaner glue scissors hole punch Preparation: Make a copy of the fish pattern and trace the pattern onto the foam sheets or posterboard. Make enough fish for at least 10 fish for each child. You will probably need to cut out the fish yourself, as young children will not have the attention span to cut out so many patterns. Cut the center out of the paper plates and punch a hole at the top and bottom of the plate. Directions: 1. Give each child a cut-out paper plate and some fish. 2. Have the children glue the fish onto the wreath plate base, being careful not to cover up the holes. 3. Twist a pipe cleaner through the top hole for hanging the wreath. 4. Take two more fish and punch a hole on the top of each fish. On one fish, write the child s name. On the other fish, write Caught by Jesus. 5. Thread some ribbon through the hole of one fish, then through the hole at the bottom of the wreath, then tie a knot. Do the same with the other fish, using a different length of thread. 14 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

15 Caught By Jesus Jason 15 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft cont.

16 Red Fish, Green Fish for Preschool, Primary Children play a game like Red Light, Green Light. Materials: optional: fish-shaped snack crackers for prizes Directions: 1. Choose one child to be Jesus. Jesus stands at one end of the room facing the wall, with a package of fish crackers. 2. At the other end of the room at a starting line, the other children lie on their bellies with their hands and arms holding up their head and shoulders, like the beginning of a pushup. 3. When Jesus yells Red Fish! children can use their hands only, to swim like a fish towards Jesus. They cannot use their feet! 4. When Jesus yells Green Fish! and turns around, the children must all stop moving. 5. When a child reaches Jesus, Jesus will give them a few fish crackers for a prize. 6. Play this until all children have reached Jesus. Then pick another child to be Jesus. This can be the first child to reach the first Jesus, or the last child, or a random choice. Let all children have a chance to be Jesus. 16 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 activity

17 Fish Bread for Preschool, Primary, Elementary, Intermediate Children make fish from bread dough and remember that Jesus feeds us, too! This bread is slightly sweet. Materials: 1½ cup whole wheat flour ½ cup white flour extra flour for flouring the kneading and shaping area 1-5 shakes of salt ½ teaspoon baking powder ¾ teaspoon baking soda extra flour 4 tablespoon honey 1½ tablespoons oil ½ cup milk ¼ cup water Preparation: To allow everyone a chance to make the dough, pre-measure the ingredients and put them in separate jars or containers, including the water. The flour can be divided into several containers. Label the containers. Then you can give each child a container of an ingredient to add at the proper time. Have a piece of paper to map the locations of each child s fish on the baking sheets. Directions: Invite each child make a fish-shaped bread as follows: 1. Mix together the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients (honey, oil, milk and water). Stir until dough sticks together. 2. Give each child a glob of dough to knead on a floured board 8-10 times. Add extra flour if necessary. 3. Pat the dough down to ¼"-½" thick. Form into the shape of a fish. Score top with a knife, making a cross or fish symbol if you wish. 4. Put on a baking sheet. Make sure that you draw a map identifying which fish is whose. 5. Bake approximately 15 minutes at 350 degrees. 17 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 activity

18 Disciples and Their Boat for Primary Children make a picture with movable figures of Jesus and the disciples in a boat. Materials: craft sticks, 12 per child boat shape (p. 19) blue construction paper (9" x 12") thin markers glue brown, yellow and white construction paper straws or coffee stirrers glue transparent tape Preparation: Make a copy of the boat shape for each child. Directions: Invite each child to make a picture as follows: 1. Cut out the boat shape and use it to outline a boat shape on brown construction paper. If you wish, decorate this boat. 2. Glue this boat to the center of the blue paper, leaving the top edge unglued and with some space above it for a sail. (Glue only the bottom and sides of the boat to the paper.) 3. Cut a triangle or square sail from the white paper. Tape this to a straw or coffee stirrer. Then glue this to the paper, inside the boat. 4. Draw faces on all of the craft sticks. You may also add clothes, etc. Eleven sticks will be the disciples ( Judas is not in this picture), and the 12th will be Jesus. 5. Cut out a tiny circle from the yellow paper. Glue this behind Jesus s head, for a halo. 6. Put Jesus and the disciples into the boat. 18 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

19 19 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft cont.

20 Breakfast-by-the-Sea Picture for Primary, Elementary Children use 3-D effects to make a picture of Jesus and the disciples beach breakfast. Materials: Jesus-at-shore picture (p. 21) fish-shaped snack crackers thin netting (from fabric stores) red, orange and yellow tissue paper cornmeal liquid glue in a paper cup, mixed with a little water paintbrushes box or box lid, for capturing excess cornmeal scissors markers or crayons stapler Preparation: Make a copy of the Jesus-at-shore picture for each child. Cut off the identifying text. Directions: Invite each child to make a picture as follows: 1. Color the picture. 2. With a paintbrush, lightly spread some glue on the ground of the picture. Pour some cornmeal onto the glue. Let dry for a few minutes while you work on the other parts of the picture. 3. Cut into small pieces (around 2" square) some red, yellow and orange tissue paper. Pinch the pieces together in the center and staple together at the crimped bottom part. 4. Empty excess cornmeal into a box or box lid. 5. Glue the tissue fire to the picture where the fire is. 6. Cut a piece of netting around 5" round, or make a rectangle around 3" x 6". Place a few goldfish crackers in the center and gather the ends together (if a circle) or fold it over (if a rectangle). Staple this net full of fish to the picture. 20 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

21 21 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft cont.

22 Fishing Boat Mobile for Elementary, Intermediate Children use paints and foam sheets to make a mobile of a fishing boat. Materials: plain white paper plates, 1 per child gray foam sheets (or posterboard) brown foam sheets or poster board string hole punch glue or stapler optional: markers or acrylic paints and thin paintbrushes blue acrylic paint or spray paint Preparation: Paint both sides of the plates blue. Older children may do this themselves. Directions: Invite each child to make a mobile as follows: 1. Cut out five or more fish shapes from the gray foam or posterboard. Decorate the fish with fins and eyes, etc. if desired, with paint or markers. 2. Cut out two identical boat shapes from the brown foam or posterboard. The boat should be almost as long as the diameter of the plate. Decorate the sides of the boat if desired with paint or markers. 3. Punch holes at various places in the plate, for hanging the fish. Punch a hole in the mouth of each fish. 4. Cut a length of string for each fish. Thread string though the fish and then through the hole in the plate, then tie a knot. Fish can hang from 2"-6" from the bottom of the plate. 5. Glue the two sides of the boat together at the bottom and sides, or staple them if necessary. Then glue the boat to the top of the plate so that it sits upright. 6. Punch two holes at opposite ends of the plate. Thread a long piece of string through each hole and knot, for hanging. 22 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

23 Tic Tac Fish for Elementary, Intermediate Children play a game just like tic-tac-toe, except that the pieces look like bread and fish, which makes it special! Materials: masking tape large construction paper, gray and brown scissors Directions: 1. Tape the floor to make nine squares, in a classic tic-tac-toe pattern. Make sure that the squares will be large enough to fit the fish and bread playing pieces. 2. Cut out several bread shapes and several fish shapes from the construction paper. For a fun idea, make stuffed paper fish and bread by stapling to identical pieces together with newspaper stuffed inside. 3. Divide the children into two teams and have the teams decide where to put their pieces. The goal is to line up three fish or three pieces of bread vertically, horizontally or diagonally. 23 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 activity

24 Outreach: A Gift for Our Elderly Friends for Elementary, Intermediate Children assemble fish snacks to share with others in the congregation and community. Materials: fish-shaped snack crackers gummy fish thin netting in various colors thin blue ribbon paper markers Preparation: Make arrangements with your church s pastoral care team to distribute the gifts to elderly friends in your church and community. Directions: Invite each child to make a gift as follows: 1. Cut a piece of netting around 9"-12" around. 2. Place the crackers or gummy fish or both in the center of the netting. 3. On a piece of paper, write a personal greeting. In addition, write Jesus said, Follow me and I will make your Fish for People. 4. Gather up the netting and tie with thin ribbon. 24 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 craft

25 Conversation Jump Start: What Kind of Food Do Your Sheep Eat, Lord? for Intermediate Children act out and respond to difficult situations they may encounter in everyday life. Materials: What Kind of Food Do Your Sheep Eat, Lord? sheet, 1 copy per child (p. 26) Conversation Jump Start: Read the following aloud to the group: Jesus said to Peter, Feed my sheep. We are to care for God s people not only by feeding them physical food but also by feeding them love and compassion. Sometimes that gets hard. We will take turns reading the three situations aloud, then acting them out. Later, we will discuss our responses. Note: If you have time, take turns acting out the different parts, so that everybody has experienced all sides of these issues. 25 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 Conversation

26 What Kind of Food Do Your Sheep Eat, Lord? Friends Forever? Heather and Brittany had been best friends forever. When Jessica joined their class, both girls became friends with her. But in a couple of weeks, Jessica had turned Heather against Brittany, leaving Brittany alone at lunch, recess, and after school. Brittany feels hurt by Heather, and now she hates Jessica for stealing her best friend. Now Brittany is paired with Jessica on a school project. Act out a scene in which Brittany tries to put aside her hatred of Jessica and show her love, even after what Jessica has done to her. Rich and Poor Mark comes from a big family, and they don t have much money, so most of his clothes are hand-me-downs or from used clothes stores. Steve always wears new and expensive clothes and makes fun of Mark because of the way he dresses. Mark hates being teased by Steve and once thought about punching him out. But one day in church, he heard a sermon that talked to him about loving our enemy. And he wants to do that. Now Steve is teasing Mark again. Act out a scene with Mark trying to treat Steve with love and kindness and forgiveness instead of with anger and threat of violence. Helping Hand Kaitlyn is such a pain in class! She copies answers from other kid s work, steals pens and pencils out of desks, and gets other kids in trouble for things she has done. But now Kaitlyn s mom and Josh s mom have just become friends. Josh s mom invited Kaitlyn and her mom to come to church this Sunday, and has asked Josh to help Kaitlyn feel welcome in church. Now Josh and Kaitlyn are in the Church School class and Josh is going to try to be friendly and kind to Kaitlyn. Act out this scene. 26 Lesson 35 Jesus helps catch fish WEAVING TOGETHER THE FAMILY OF GOD, YEAR 2 CONVERSATION CONT.

27 We Believe... Anglicanism is an incarnate faith. That is, Anglicans believe God is present in all things and in our daily life and time. Like our Celtic forbears, we see God not just in worship but also in daily life even in very ordinary chores. Anglicanism is also a practical faith. It s not enough to believe; it s essential that we put our belief into action. It is not enough to say I love you, Jesus ; this love must be translated into action. Thus, Episcopalians tend to have a deep commitment to outreach and social justice to helping the poor, to feeding God s sheep wherever they are and whatever their need. Words of Faith love devotion to someone, true caring believe to know and trust Feed my sheep. Take care of my people. Jesus invites us, as he invited his disciples, to feed his sheep. Lesson 35: Jesus Helps Catch Fish Today s Story John 21:1-19 The men have gone back to their daily life and work as it was before they had met and been so changed by Jesus. Life is once again the same...or is it? It makes sense that their lives should continue as before, at least on the outside. God means for us to be part of the world. Christ means to work in us as we live our normal everyday lives. He did not expect that we should stay on the mountaintop with him always. And what does Jesus say to his friends? He tells them how to catch fish! At first, they do not know who this man is, for they like us often do not expect to see God in everyday activities and frustrations. But that is where he waits for us by Joanna Leiserson. Published by Morehouse Education Resources, All rights reserved.

28 Sharing Read today s story of Jesus and his disciples on the shore from a children s Bible, showing the pictures, or from your family Bible. Using dramatic motions or voice inflections will bring out the intensity of these meetings with Jesus. Notice the excitement of Peter, and also his great humility and the poignancy of his talk with Jesus. Recall the lesson from a few weeks ago when Peter had denied his Lord three times before the crucifixion, and that he was ashamed of his own lack of courage in facing Jesus accusers. You might discuss: Why do you think Jesus repeatedly asks Peter if Peter loves him? What might Jesus mean when he says, Feed my sheep? How can we do the same as Peter? If we love Jesus, how will we show it? This Week at Home Act out today s story. After reading the story, assign parts to family members. You can either act it out, adding your own dialogue to what is included in the passage from John, or invite the actors to pantomime the story as one family member reads it aloud from the Bible. Talk about what it means to Feed Jesus lambs, Tend Jesus sheep and Feed Jesus sheep. In practical terms, how do we do this? As a family, how can we do this for each other? How can we do this for others in our church? in our neighborhood? Come up with a list and commit to following through on a few. See Jesus in everyday things. Christ is present everywhere, as he was in the disciples fishing day, but sometimes we miss him. Do a scavenger hunt for Jesus in your home and around your yard. Look for signs of Jesus. Have each one make a list of what they find Jesus in sunshine, Jesus in your favorite music, Jesus in your garden, in your play, in your books, in your music, in the food you eat Then come back together and compare your lists. Then walk around together: How many more signs of Jesus can you see in the everyday? Who are Jesus lambs and sheep? Jesus wants us to care for the people who are helpless, in need or vulnerable, like sheep. Sheep depend on caregivers to take care of them. Who are the lambs and sheep in your neighborhood? in your community? Find out who takes care of them the agencies and organizations and even the individuals who feed and house and help the poor and helpless. If possible, visit one of the agencies (a food bank, a shelter). How does your church feed Jesus sheep? In what ways does your church actively seek out and help those in need? Once you find out what your church does, is there some way that you, as a family, could help out? Use cotton balls and felt scraps to make sheep. Glue cotton balls together to form a body, a head and legs. Add felt scraps for eyes and a mouth. Let each sheep be a reminder to care for each other. Household Prayer Loving God, thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, who teaches us how to love you and to love each other. Thank you for Peter, Jesus friend, who learned a hard lesson about loving Jesus. Help us to love to our parents, our brothers and sisters, and everyone we know and see. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen. Lesson 35 Jesus Helps Catch Fish Weaving god s promises, YEAR by Joanna Leiserson. Published by Morehouse Education Resources, All rights reserved.