I Hate Fishing PT II

"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad!" The little voice echoed across the placid lake. "My line is tangled again!"

I sighed. I hate fishing. At least for the moment.

And then, I had a thought. Fishing for fish is a lot like fishing for men. Let me explain.

Jesus told his disciples early on to be fishers of men. Many were fisherman already, so this was a natural metaphor. Clearly, we are to take the gospel (Lit . "good news") to the ends of the earth, and the fishing analogy is really quite appropriate. To whit:

*You need the right bait, lure, and/or technique! I know some great fishermen, and they know what the fish are bighting on e.g. mayflies, minnows etc. A good fisherman knows what a trout likes versus a bass, what time of year it is, and where the fish like to hang out. In the same way, a good evangelist knows his audience and what makes them tick. Lately, some people in my neck of the woods are using open air preaching to try and "reach" people witht the gospel. This is just poor technique, though the goal is good-fishing for men. It is like using worms to catch a wild brook trout. Although you may get lucky, it doesn't work most of the time. Missionaries overseas truly study the people they are trying to reach-just quoting scripture doesn't work in most cultures, including this one.

*It can be frustrating. I caught no fish this last trip. And I rarely see people come to Christ here in Utah. But I have caught a bunch of fish in other lakes and I have led bunches of people to Christ in other places, e.g. California. They just aren't biting here. You can theorize all you want to, but only God really knows why.

*You want to quit when nothing happens. Who keeps throwing their line out when it's obvious nothing is biting? In the same way, I have shared my faith with many people here, but no bites. I have wanted to quit many times-but.......

*When you finally catch one, it suddenly seems worth it! I have been fishing for hours and am about ready to pack it in- it was a wasted trip. Suddenly the line jerks and I know I have one! It is a great feeling when I reel that big boy in! In the same way, when you help lead someone into a new relationship with Christ, it fills you with elation! (I say help, because it is not me who really leads anyone to Christ, but actually the Holy Spirit of God). All that time talking, praying, thinking, perhaps reasoning and debating-it does seem worth it after all! And then you want to do it again!

So do I really hate fishing-for fish or for men? Well, not really. It just depends when you catch.... me.