FISHERS OF MEN Sunday, May 3, 2020 MEMORY VERSE: “And he said to them, ‘follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’” Matthew 4:19 OPENING PRAYER: Gather your family around your sacred prayer space. This can be any place where you and your family can be together, quiet yourself and pray. Be sure to have a cross, a Bible, a picture of the resurrected Christ, and a candle. Remember, if you’re lighting a real candle to use proper safety practices and blow out the candle when you’re finished praying! And since we are still in the Easter Season, a WHITE or GOLD piece of fabric will finish your prayer space off nicely. If you have a fishing net or even a small fishing pole, place that on your prayer table. Open with the Sign of the Cross. Loving Father, Give us the courage to follow when we hear you call. Guide us back to the path that leads to your kingdom if we should lose our way. We ask this in the name of Jesus our Lord. Amen. THEME INTRODUCTION: This is our last official lesson plan of the year, as we wrap up the 2019/20 Faith Formation year. The last 29 weeks have been spent teaching each other what it means to be a Disciple of Christ. What exactly does it mean to be a Disciple of Christ? Scripture compares it to fishing. Does your family enjoy fishing? Have you or a family member ever caught a fish? Some people find fishing to be a great sport! If you’ve ever been fishing and caught a fish, you know that there’s a great feeling of excitement when you catch a fish. One of the things that makes fishing such a great sport is that you can be any age to enjoy it! Ask your family what it takes to be good at catching fish? First and foremost, you need to have the right equipment. You can't just get a piece of string, put a hook on it, tie it on the end of a stick then expect to catch a lot of fish, can you? If you’re serious about fishing, you have to make sure you have proper fishing equipment like a nice rod and reel and some good bait! Another important item is knowing where to fish. Location, location, location! And finally, probably the hardest thing you must learn to have is patience. How many of you have been fishing and sat in the hot sun, mosquitos biting, all the bottled water gone and no fish. Sometimes they just aren't biting. But then the next time you go, your net is overflowing with fish! They say that patience is a virtue. Our Bible lesson today has something to do with fishing. One day, Jesus was walking along the seashore when he saw two brothers named Peter and Andrew. Jesus knew they made their living by fishing, so He called out to them, "Follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!" Do you know what they did? They laid down their fishing nets and followed Jesus...no questions asked. But, Jesus was such an extraordinary man that even people who had never met or seen Him before were ready and willing to leave everything behind...their nets, boats, even their families, everything they depended on for their livelihood and security...and follow Him. These were the first Disciples of Christ.
Jesus wants you and I to fish for people, too. That means that Jesus wants us to tell others about what He has done for us and what He wants to do for them. Fishing for people is a lot like fishing for fish. First, we need to be properly equipped. We need to know what the Bible teaches and learn how • to share it with others. Next, we need to go out where the people are and tell them all about Jesus and the incredible • love He has for us. Finally, we must be patient. People don’t always accept Jesus’ great gift of His love immediately. • But, we must keep trying! If we are willing to do these things, we can really become fishers of people like Jesus wants us to be. If you think there is a great feeling of excitement in catching a fish, just imagine how exciting it must be to bring someone to Jesus! Acclamation (Baa, baa, black sheep) Glory, glory, glory to God, praise him, praise him with our song. Praise to the Father and praise to the Son and Praise the Holy Spirit, Three persons in One. A reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew GOSPEL READING: Open your Bible and read Matthew 4:18 - 22. This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ. Reflection Questions: Who did Jesus call to be his first disciples? Simon Peter and his brother Andrew and James and • John who were also brothers What “lure” can Christians use to draw people to Jesus? The best lure or bait is God’s love. • Why does Jesus want us to be fishers of men? Just as fishermen cast their nets out to catch fish, • so can we gather people from far and wide to become followers of Christ. What are some ways we can share Jesus’ love with other people? Let your family members give • you examples of how they can show love to others. How does loving others draw people to Christ? Nothing draws people to Jesus more than seeing • real love in action! We talked about needing a “lure” or “bait” for your fishing pole. Ask your family what a lure/bait is? (squishy worms, minnows) You need to put some bait on the line in order to attract the fish to your fishing line and make him bite. Like any good fishermen, we need to have good bait when we go fishing. The best bait is the love of God. When we love others the way Jesus loves us, we show people how much Jesus loves them. Nothing draws people to Jesus more than seeing real love in action. Jesus is counting on us to reach out to others and share the good news. Let’s love our neighbors and give them a reason to believe.
EXTRA ACTIVITIES: CRAFTS: Here are some easy, cute fish crafts from cardboard toilet tissue rolls, cupcake holders, paper plates and tempera paint! The first craft is from Catholic Icing and the directions are below. https://www.catholicicing.com/glittery - jesus - fish - craft - make - a - mobile/ SNACKS: GAME: Here’s a fun game that can be done with fish cut from construction paper and a blue tablecloth or sheet! http://easybreezysundayschool.blogspot.com/2015/01/fishers - of - men.html?spref=pi VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_IHk --- CsE SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v54IJLT171w And as always, check out the website www.catholicicing.com for a great assortment of Fishers of Men activities! If you still haven’t signed up for this website newsletter, I highly recommend it!
CONCLUSION: Jesus tells Peter, Andrew, James, and John that he wants them to be fishers of men. That sounds pretty strange, but when you remember that Peter, Andrew, James, and John were actually fishermen, you realize Jesus was speaking their language. Fishermen go out to sea to gather up fish. They use lures and bait to draw the fish in so they can be caught. As Christians we don’t want to catch other people in a net but we do want to catch their attention so we can tell them about Jesus. Like fishermen, we need bait that is attractive to people. Unlike fishermen, we can’t dangle worms in front of them, although gummy worms might work! No seriously, we need a “bait” that will help people see how much Jesus loves them. And there’s no better way to draw people to Jesus than by loving others the way Jesus first loved us. Remember the Golden Rule? Love others the way Jesus loves us. If you read through the gospels, you’ll see how Jesus used love to draw people to him, one at a time. From the Samaritan woman at the well, to the religious leader Nicodemus, to Zacchaeus the tax collector, Jesus showed people how much he loved them. That love, more than anything, led them to believe and they in turn went out and told other people about Jesus. We can love others by being a good friend. That means being there for our friends, being a helpful hand when it’s needed and being a good listener. It also means reaching out to people who don’t have many friends. That takes courage, but it’s a great way to show the love of Jesus. Loving others also means we resist the temptation to hurt others. When someone pushes us, we don’t push back. When people gossip, we don’t join in. When we are called names and made fun of, we respond with love instead of cruel words. People may think we are strange for doing such things. Anyone else might fight back! But we are not “anyone else.” We are fishers of men. We are people saved by Jesus, commanded to share Jesus’ awesome love with others. A good fisherman knows that he needs a good lure to draw in the fish. Fishers of men know the one thing that draws people to Jesus is His love. Ask God to make you a fisher of men. Ask him to help you bring others to see the great love of Jesus! For on - line computer activities, check out games.childrensbulletins.com (This is the activity sheet the children use each week in Faith Formation class.). Use the secret code YDF885 for children ages 3 - 6 and secret code FSFT68 for children ages 7 - 12. After you’re done with your fun family faith activity(ies), please sure to finish up your Disciples of Christ lesson plan with a Closing Prayer. CLOSING PRAYER: Begin with the Sign of the Cross. Read a line then have the rest of the family members repeat: Dear God, as followers of Jesus help us to be good fishers of men . Help us show your love by our words and by our actions so that many people can be brought into your Kingdom. Help us to be good fishers of men like Peter, James and John. Amen! Now go out and be amazing Disciples of Christ!
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