Fellowship – Snacks or a Meal (10 minutes with snacks; longer, obviously, if there is a meal).

Gathering Time (5-10 minutes). In pairs or groups of three, have participants discuss:

Think of a time when you labored in the usual way, expecting the usual success but your efforts resulted in unusual failure. What thoughts came to mind? Describe your emotions. What did you feel like doing—or not doing—next?

Group Dialogue (Approximately 30 minutes). Read Luke 5:1-1.1

What did Jesus see and experience that drew him to Simon’s boat? [Jesus experienced a crowd of listeners pressing upon him to hear the word of God. He also saw two boats at the shore. After a night of fishing with no results, the fishermen were washing their nets. He chose to get into Simon’s boat. Luke 5:1-2.]

What did Jesus request of Simon? [After Jesus got into Simon’s boat, he asked him to move a short way from the shore. Simon’s boat then became the platform from which Jesus taught the crowd (Luke 5:3).]

Luke 5:4 tells us that “When he (Jesus) had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’” Why would Simon, an experienced fisherman, consider these instructions nonsense? [In the preaching notes, we learn that “fishing was done at night in those days. The fishermen would spend the night in the shallows, tossing their nets and pulling in the catch. Then as dawn broke, they would bring the fish to shore and sell them at the market.” The preaching notes go on to say that Jesus’ approach was “. . .against his (Simon’s) better judgment . . . and. . . wasn’t the way things were done in his business . . . ”]

What is the significance of Simon addressing Jesus as “Master” when he expressed his resistance, then his compliance?
What do you estimate is Simon’s level of commitment to fishing Jesus’ way?

The preaching note says, “Peter knew he was in over his head. ‘Go away from me.’ That’s the first thing he thinks to say in the face of someone who lived so much more deeply than he did. ‘Go away I can’t handle it; I’m not good enough for it; I don’t have the strength.”

When have you felt “in over your head” in your efforts to follow Jesus? What guidance does Simon’s honest outburst to Jesus offer you for growing through such times?

In response to Simon’s confession, Jesus gifted him with both comfort and calling when he said, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people” (Luke 5:10). And Simon, along with his partners James and John, left everything—including that astonishing catch of fish—to go deeper with Jesus.

What will you do to sense Jesus’ comfort and calling in the midst of life’s challenges? What do you need to leave behind to follow Jesus’ invitation to go deeper? How can your faith community help you hear and follow Jesus?

Prayer (10 minutes). Share prayer requests and respond appropriately.

Sending Forth (2 minutes). End with the following prayer, a similar prayer, or the Lord’s Prayer:

God, who is ever present with us in our struggles, give us the trust to come to you as we are. Gant us the courage to embrace what you call us to embrace and release what you call us to release, so that we can be the disciples you call us to be. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.

Rev. Sherry Bryant-Johnson, an ordained United Methodist deacon, recently retired from almost three decades of serving extension ministry appointments. She continues to live out her calling as a teacher, author, and spiritual director.