Fishers of Men Quilted Blanket

One day, Jesus was preaching from the shore and a man named Simon offered to let Jesus use his boat to stand in so the crowd could hear him better. Many were listening to the wise words of Jesus, but Simon may have been troubled in his heart about last night's catch. Simon was a fisherman, and fishermen need to catch fish in order to make money, but he and his brother had spent the whole night fishing and caught nothing! When Jesus was done borrowing Simon's boat, He told him to cast his net into the water. Even though Simon didn't feel much like fishing anymore, he obeyed, and when the net swooped into the sea it caught so many fish that Simon's boat began to sink! He knew then, that Jesus was more than just a wise teacher. Jesus told Simon, his brother, and his friends, to all follow Him. They immediately dropped their nets and became disciples, or students, of Jesus. Simon was told by Jesus, "I will make you a fisher of men!"

Even though God can do all things Himself, He loves to involve the people He made. So when Jesus wanted to bring good news of salvation to the Earth, He invited people to join Him - called disciples. If anyone follows Jesus, he or she is a disciple of His, and they too are called to be a fisher of men!

Matthew 4:19: And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."

Fishing for men means we tell people about the good news of Jesus - that if we believe in Him and make Him our Lord we will be saved from our sin. No longer will all the bad things we've done, said, and thought, be counted against us by God. Instead, we become sons and daughters of God and can live forever with Him! Our job is to catch people for Jesus like Simon caught fish that glorious day.

Dear God, I want to be a fisher of men for your kingdom! Please send your Holy Spirit to help me catch people for you. Teach me to love others more than I fear what they'll think about me, and show me how to make disciples for You.