A New Way to Fish
But Simon Peter was not happy.
“Come on, Andrew!” he growled at his brother. “There are more fishermen than fish out here. We’ve got to hurry.”
Peter and Andrew rowed with all their might to reach their favorite spot. But boats crowded the sea. Worse still, other fishermen were already pulling in netloads of fish.
Peter grumbled louder with every stroke.
Suddenly, Peter’s oar flew from his hands as another vessel bumped into the boat. Andrew squeezed his eyes closed, afraid of what would happen.
“You bumbling baboons!” Peter shouted. “Do you have mushrooms for eyes? Was your father a carpenter?”
Andrew cringed. There was nothing meaner than calling a fisherman the son of a carpenter. Peter didn’t care about people. He only cared about his boat and catching fish.
“Peter?” The voices from the other boat sounded familiar. “It’s us, James and John.”
Peter clamped his mouth shut. James and John were their fishing partners. He was embarrassed, frustrated and mad all at the same time.
The four men cast their nets all night long, listening to the songs of happy fishermen who were catching lots of fish.
The sun rose. All the other fishermen had gone home. Andrew, James and John wished they could go home, too, but Peter kept them fishing. They hadn’t caught anything.
Finally they gave up and rowed to shore.
As the men began washing their nets, a crowd of people jostled over the hill. They were following a man who taught them as he walked.
“That’s Jesus, the Teacher,” Andrew said. “He’s the son of a carpenter from Nazareth.”
Peter snarled and kept scrubbing. But as the Teacher drew near, Peter strained to hear His words.
Suddenly the crowd was right next to Peter’s boat, pushing closer to see Jesus. Peter was ready to shout at them.
Jesus turned to Peter and smiled. “May I step into your boat?” He asked. Confused, Peter nodded. Jesus stepped in, sat down and kept teaching. Peter dropped down beside Him, listening thoughtfully.
When Jesus finished speaking, He said to Peter, “Go out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
“Master,” Peter answered, “we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.”
What happened next was a miracle. The nets came up from the sea overflowing with fish! But the biggest surprise was Peter’s whispered reply: “Go away from me, Lord! I am a sinful man!”
Jesus put his hand on Peter’s head, “From now on you will be a fisher of men.”
It was time for Peter to learn a new way to fish.