Jesus Made Breakfast for His Helpers
John 21:1-14
Our story comes from the Bible. It is in the part, or book, of the Bible called John. John was one of the special helpers of Jesus.
Seven of Jesus’ friends went fishing. There was Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James, John, and two others.
Jesus’ friends had been fishing all night. But they had not caught one fish! The men lowered the fishing net one more time. They waited before they pulled the net up, up, up.
The net was empty—again!
It was morning and the sun was coming up. The men saw someone walking on the shore. They didn’t know who it was. “Friends, did you catch any fish?” He called.
“No,” Jesus’ friends shouted from the boat. “Not even one.”
“Throw your net on the right side of the boat. Then you will catch some fish,” He said.
The men in the boat did just as they were told. Then they tried to lift the net into the boat. But the net was so full of fish that they couldn’t lift it!
“It’s Jesus!” said one man. Only Jesus could help them to catch that many fish.
Peter was so excited that he put on his coat, jumped out of the boat and swam to shore. The others rowed the boat to shore, towing the net full of 153 fish.
Jesus’ friends saw that He had made a fire. Jesus was cooking a breakfast of fish and bread on the fire.
“Come and eat,” Jesus said. “Bring some of your fish and we will cook them, too.”
Jesus cared for His friends. He helped them find fish and cooked them breakfast.
Jesus talked to Peter. Jesus reminded Peter to tell people about Jesus and to care for them, too.
Jesus always cares for His friends. We’re His friends, too.
Bible Paraphrase: The Lord is my helper. (“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” – Hebrews 13:6 NIV)
Text Truth: Jesus always cares for His friends.
In the midst of the struggle to sort out Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples went fishing. Jesus understood their need to get away. He met them there and cared for His friends emotionally and physically.
You, too, are Jesus’ friend. He is with you no matter what. He will meet you wherever you are. The next time life’s pressures are getting to you and you are needing to get away, run to Jesus. Immerse yourself in His Word, cry out to Him, and allow Him to give you peace and comfort in the midst of chaos. He cares for you.
This rhyme reminds us that Jesus is our helper.
Take your family to a lake and pretend to fish or actually fish. If you can't go to a lake, visit an aquarium or local pool or make your own lake in the bathtub or backyard. Jesus cared for His friends at the lake. Where else does Jesus care for us?
You’ll Need: fish-shaped metal cookie cutter, pancake batter, griddle, stove, spatula, cooking oil or cooking spray
Make fish-shaped pancakes by pouring batter inside a fish-shaped metal cookie cutter. Spray the cookie cutter with cooking spray to keep pancakes from sticking.
Help your child care for his friends just like Jesus cared for His friends. Pick something you and your preschooler can do to show friends you care, such as: giving fish-shaped pancakes, making a card, or spending time together. Make sure your friend knows that Jesus cares for him too.
Put seat cushions on the floor or arrange chairs in a row for a boat. Use a small blanket for a net and help your child move the net to the right side of the ship and catch lots of fish. End the story enjoying fish-shaped crackers.
You’ll Need: magazines, glue, paper, safety scissors
Cut sheet of paper into fish shapes. Glue pictures from magazines that show ways Jesus cares for us and ways we care for friends onto the paper. Thank Jesus for caring for us and ask His help in caring for our friends.
Our story comes from the Bible. It is in the part, or book, of the Bible called John. John was one of the special helpers of Jesus.
Seven of Jesus’ friends went fishing. There was Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James, John, and two others.
Jesus’ friends had been fishing all night. But they had not caught one fish! The men lowered the fishing net one more time. They waited before they pulled the net up, up, up.
The net was empty—again!
It was morning and the sun was coming up. The men saw someone walking on the shore. They didn’t know who it was. “Friends, did you catch any fish?” He called.
“No,” Jesus’ friends shouted from the boat. “Not even one.”
“Throw your net on the right side of the boat. Then you will catch some fish,” He said.
The men in the boat did just as they were told. Then they tried to lift the net into the boat. But the net was so full of fish that they couldn’t lift it!
“It’s Jesus!” said one man. Only Jesus could help them to catch that many fish.
Peter was so excited that he put on his coat, jumped out of the boat and swam to shore. The others rowed the boat to shore, towing the net full of 153 fish.
Jesus’ friends saw that He had made a fire. Jesus was cooking a breakfast of fish and bread on the fire.
“Come and eat,” Jesus said. “Bring some of your fish and we will cook them, too.”
Jesus cared for His friends. He helped them find fish and cooked them breakfast.
Jesus talked to Peter. Jesus reminded Peter to tell people about Jesus and to care for them, too.
Jesus always cares for His friends. We’re His friends, too.
Bible Paraphrase: The Lord is my helper. (“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” – Hebrews 13:6 NIV)
Text Truth: Jesus always cares for His friends.
Family Devotional
Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. — John 21:2-3
In the midst of the struggle to sort out Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples went fishing. Jesus understood their need to get away. He met them there and cared for His friends emotionally and physically.
You, too, are Jesus’ friend. He is with you no matter what. He will meet you wherever you are. The next time life’s pressures are getting to you and you are needing to get away, run to Jesus. Immerse yourself in His Word, cry out to Him, and allow Him to give you peace and comfort in the midst of chaos. He cares for you.
Activities You Can Do at Home
Bible Rhyme
This rhyme reminds us that Jesus is our helper.
Jesus made sick people well
(Point to the palm of each hand.)
And talked to His friends every day.
(Tap fingers on thumbs for talking.)
I know the Lord is my helper.
(Point up, then to self.)
He listens whenever I pray.
(Fold hands in prayer.)
Go Fishing
Take your family to a lake and pretend to fish or actually fish. If you can't go to a lake, visit an aquarium or local pool or make your own lake in the bathtub or backyard. Jesus cared for His friends at the lake. Where else does Jesus care for us?
Fish-Shaped Pancakes
You’ll Need: fish-shaped metal cookie cutter, pancake batter, griddle, stove, spatula, cooking oil or cooking spray
Make fish-shaped pancakes by pouring batter inside a fish-shaped metal cookie cutter. Spray the cookie cutter with cooking spray to keep pancakes from sticking.
Care for Friends
Help your child care for his friends just like Jesus cared for His friends. Pick something you and your preschooler can do to show friends you care, such as: giving fish-shaped pancakes, making a card, or spending time together. Make sure your friend knows that Jesus cares for him too.
Act Out the Bible Story
Put seat cushions on the floor or arrange chairs in a row for a boat. Use a small blanket for a net and help your child move the net to the right side of the ship and catch lots of fish. End the story enjoying fish-shaped crackers.
Caring Collage
You’ll Need: magazines, glue, paper, safety scissors
Cut sheet of paper into fish shapes. Glue pictures from magazines that show ways Jesus cares for us and ways we care for friends onto the paper. Thank Jesus for caring for us and ask His help in caring for our friends.
Images are the copyright of Arabs for Christ and distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license. (http://www.arabsforchrist.org/)
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Thanks for doing this, Jimmy! We love it.
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