Simon Peter did not think they would catch anything, but when he let down the nets, the nets quickly filled with fish. There were so many that their nets began to break. So Simon Peter called his friends and they came to help. They hauled the fish from the nets into the boats, and the boats were so full that they nearly sank. Simon Peter was afraid when he saw what Jesus could do, but Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid. From now on you will be fishers of people.” Then Simon Peter and Andrew left their boats to follow Jesus. Just then Simon Peter’s friends James and John were getting their nets ready to go fishing. Jesus called them, and they left their boat with their father Zebedee and followed Jesus. Soon after this Jesus went to the mountain to pray. When he came back, he chose twelve men to be his special friends. He called these men his disciples. They were always with him and he told them all about God’s kingdom. They saw his miracles. They saw him helping people and healing them. They were with him to the end of his life. The twelve men were Simon Peter and his brother Andrew, James and his brother John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot. Matthew 4:18–22 Mark1:14–20; 3:13–19 Luke 5:1–11, 27–28; 6:12–16
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