Week 3 Story: The Fisherman with One Hand

Fishing Along the Shore. Link. 

It was around that time that the arrived at the coast. On a long stretch of shoreline there stood a fisherman who had but one hand. The disciples looked around but saw no one else around that might be helping the man. They sat and watched, astounded that the fisherman had enough strength in only one useful arm to cast such a large net. The man kept one arm, the hindered one, behind his back in a sling, while he used the other to set his net against the tide. Each time a collection of light waves would come, the man would slowly walk around the waist-deep water to each of his anchors, unclipping and pulling in the net. It was midday and the sun was high. Because of this, most of the fish had gone away to deeper water and the man’s catch was slim. Still, he continued to slowly make his way around each to each anchor. The disciples watched for a long time and were stunned. They sat cross-legged in the warm sand resting, and among them no words were spoken.

Jesus arrived at the coast later that day. Seeing the disciples sitting in the sand, He asked Paul to come forward.

“Why do you sit here in silence?”

Paul answered and pointed to the fisherman. “All day, that one-armed man has walked around through the waves, setting and unsetting his net. Even when the sun was at its highest, he continued to fish, though of course most of them were gone.”

Jesus looked around at the disciples and was grieved at their amazed eyes. “Do you only cast your nets when the sun is low and the shade is over? Would you stay home from the docks if your leg was hurt and in a wrap? Look at the baskets he has collected on the sand. Are those not the same fish that you pull into your own nets? If you fished with the same devotion and strength that he does with one hand, imagine the size of your catch with two.”

Author's Note:

This is a story loosely based around The Man with a Withered Hand, in the 3rd chapter of the Book of Mark. In the story, Jesus heals a man who only has one working hand. This is done in front of a group of Pharisees who were insulted that Jesus was "working" on the sabbath. To be honest, my story does not share the same message that is in Withered Hand. In the original, Jesus is teaching about the importance of actions and their value over "rule-following." In my story, I just wanted to write a parable that had a message that lined up with other parts of Mark. As I had noted in my reading notes for the week, I wanted to tell part of the story/message through the words surrounding the dialogue, in addition to the words themselves. 

Bibliography:

Mark 3:1-7, Harper Collins Study Bible