Devotions

Breakfast on the Beach

Bible Story (John 21:1-19)

Story from the Deep Blue Bible Story Book: Peter said to his friends, “I’m going fishing; want to go with me?” They grabbed their nets and headed to the sea. They all climbed in a boat and rowed out a ways. They cast out their nets, but there were no fish. The disciples continued fishing through the night- casting out their next and bringing them back in- but they never caught one fish.

In the morning, a man appeared on the shore. The man called out to the disciples, “if you cast your net to the other side of the boat, you will catch some fish!” The disciples weren’t sure, but they threw their nets out to the other side of the boat. This time, so many fish were caught in the net, the disciples could hardly pull the net back in!

“Look, the man on the shore; it’s Jesus!” said John. Peter jumped out of the boat and ran through the shallow water to Jesus. The other disciples followed Peter’s lead to shore. Jesus was on the shore, sitting by a fire. “Bring some of the fish you just caught, and we can all eat some fish and bread for breakfast,” Jesus said. Jesus took the fish, said a prayer to God, and shared the fish with the disciples. Jesus took the bread, said a prayer of thanks to God, and shared the bread with the disciples.

When Jesus and the disciples finished eating breakfast on the beach, Jesus asked Peter a question, “Peter, do you love me?” Peter answered, “Yes, Jesus, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said to Peter, “Feed my lambs. Share God’s love with everyone.” Jesus asked Peter again, “Peter, do you love me?” Peter answered, “Yes, Jesus, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said to Peter, “Take care of my sheep.” Jesus asked Peter again, “Peter, do you love me?”

Peter was very sad that Jesus asked him a third time if he loved Jesus. Peter answered, “Yes, Jesus, you know everything. You know that I love you. You are my best friend. “

Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Follow my example.”

Video Telling of the Story: Breakfast on the Beach

Have a Conversation:

• This is the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was crucified and rose from the grave on the third day. Why do you think the disciples did not recognize Jesus on the shore when he first spoke to them?
• The disciples recognized that it was Jesus speaking to them on the shore when he told them to cast their nets out on the other side of the boat and their nets were filled after a night of catching nothing. Does this remind you of another Bible story? Jesus told the disciples to cast their nets out after a long night of fishing when he called them to follow him as his disciples! (You can read this story in Matthew 4:12-23, 9:9-13, 10:1-4; Luke 5:1-11, 8:1-30.)
• After Jesus’ death, Peter and the disciples went back to what was familiar to them, fishing. They returned to their boats and fish nets. When they finished breakfast, Jesus asked Peter three times “Peter, do you love me?” and responded “feed my sheep” and “take care of my sheep.” Jesus was giving Peter a second chance after denying Jesus three times. Jesus wanted to remind Peter what he was supposed to do as his disciple. What can you do as a disciple of Jesus to show Jesus that you love him?

Prayer

• Heavenly Father, thank you for your love that never changes. Thank you that you always welcome us with open arms and continually invite us to be with us. Just as you invited the disciples to come have breakfast with you long ago, you invite us daily to be in communion with you. Open our eyes to notice you in every moment. Amen.

Activities

• Take a Look Back: Gather together baby pictures of everyone in your family. Look through these photos together and have a conversation about what is going on in the picture. Ask you child if they remember what is going on in their baby pictures. They may not recognize themselves, the other people in the picture or what was taking place, but with your help they can remember what is happening. In our Bible story today, the disciples did not recognize Jesus when they first saw him, and this was the third time he appeared to them after his death. Jesus helped his disciples recognize and remember who he is by telling them to cast out their fishing nets on the other side of the boat. When they pulled the nets back in, the nets were full of fish, a miraculous catch, just like the miraculous catch when Jesus first called them to become his disciples.
• Play “Go Fish”: As you are playing, talk about how Jesus helped the disciples fish (both for fish and for people). Ask “who helped you fish?” during your game!
• Make Breakfast as a Family: Make your favorite recipes as a family and enjoy breakfast together as the disciples did with Jesus on the beach long ago. Weather permitting, enjoy your meal outside!

Resources

Deep Blue Bible Storybook written by Kerry Blackwood, Daphna Flegal, and Brittany Sky

https://ministry-to-children.com/breakfast-on-the-beach/

The Road to Emmaus

Bible Story

From the Spark Story Bible: Three days after Jesus died, Cleopas and his friend were walking slowly down the road to Emmaus. They were walking slowly because they felt very sad. “Why did Jesus have to die?” they wondered. After a while, a stranger began to walk along with them. The stranger was really Jesus, but Cleopas and his friends didn’t know it.

“What are you talking about?” the stranger asked. The men looked at each other. “Are you the only person in town who doesn’t know what just happened?” they asked. They told the stranger what had happened to Jesus. “Jesus was a great teacher,” Cleopas said. “We hoped he was the one God promised would save the world, but instead he died on a cross! We took Jesus’ body down and put it in a tomb. This morning, our friends went to the tomb, but Jesus’ body was gone! They said there was an angel there instead! The angel told our friends, ‘Jesus is alive, but…”

“Stop being silly!” the stranger said. “How many times do you need to hear this? It was God’s plan for Jesus to die and become alive again to save the world!”

By now, they were almost to Emmaus. Cleopas invited the stranger to stay for dinner. During dinner, the stranger picked up a loaf of bread, broke it, blessed it, and gave each man a piece. All of a sudden, Cleopas and his friend recognized the stranger. It was Jesus, but then Jesus disappeared! Cleopas and his friend jumped up, ran from the room, and went to tell the rest of Jesus’ disciples that Jesus really was alive! God kept another promise!

Video Telling of the Story: The Road to Emmaus

• Have a Conversation:
  • Cleopas and his friend did not recognize Jesus until dinner, when Jesus broke the bread, blessed it, and gave each man a piece, just as he did at the Last Supper. Why do you think Cleopas and his friends didn’t recognize Jesus when he was walking with them?
  • Once Cleopas and his friend realized that it was Jesus with them, they ran to tell the other disciples that Jesus was alive, just as he promised! If you saw Jesus walking down the road, who would you tell? What would you say?
  • Jesus is always with us, and is working in our lives! How have you seen Jesus today?
• Prayer
  • Heavenly Father, thank you that you give us eyes to see. Open the eyes of our hearts to see you at work and to see your goodness. Just as the friends on the road to Emmaus, may we always be excited to share the joy that Jesus is alive, today and always! Amen.
• Activities
  • Make a Road to Emmaus Snack: Spread cream cheese, peanut butter, yogurt, etc. onto graham crackers. Sprinkle cookie crumbs on top to make a dirt road. Use gummy bears, animal crackers, or teddy grahams as Cleopas, his friend, and Jesus walking on the road.
  • Take a Family Walk: As you are out walking, talk about how you have seen Jesus at work in your family, your neighborhood, and your community. If you see neighbors out on your walk, share the good news with them that Jesus is alive!
  • Chalk Prayers: Invite your children to go outside and write or draw their prayers with chalk on your driveway, you can join in the fun too! When it rains, or the chalk fades, remind them of how Jesus disappeared after Cleopas and his friend recognized that it was Jesus. This was exciting to Cleopas and his friend and they had to share their joy!
• Resources

Spark Story Bible from Sparkhouse by Patti Thisted Arthur

https://sermons4kids.com/road_to_emmaus_group_activities.htm