LET’S GO FISHING!!

By Anita Mondragon
 
“If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. -Luke 9:23

That was the verse I drew from my Promise Box this morning.

As I read it, I was reminded of the Disciples when Jesus called them to follow Him.  Most of them were fishermen.  He told them to leave their boats, put down their nets, and follow Him.

I think God chose fishermen because of their tenacity.  When I use that word, I have my dad and my husband in mind!

When I was a kid, my dad would get us up at 4 a.m. to be at the river bank or lake, no later than 5 a.m.  He would fish ALL day long – sometimes until midnight; and then at 4 a.m., we’d be up to do it all over again.  It didn’t matter if we had caught anything.  His enthusiasm never dwindled.  He was positive he was going to “catch the big one” any minute now!

My husband isn’t quite that fanatical…but, he usually is out of the house by 6 a.m. and has been known to fish all day long.  He too is not dissuaded in his quest for “the big one.”

My point is this…God loves fishermen because they won’t quit!   They are persistent in their belief.  Their faith is unwavering.  They will go the extra mile (hike in to a place that is unreachable by any vehicle…you must walk miles and miles.

….  Fishermen will come home with horrific sun burns, bug bites covering their bodies; soaked from standing in the rain, or near frostbite from standing in the cold.  They are undaunted by what seems to be the obvious to the rest of us – which is “no fish today!”  Yet they continue to believe that the next fishing hole they stop at will give them the “BIG ONE!”

This is how we need to be in our quest for lost souls!  Nothing should deter us from looking for them, and ultimately “hooking” them with the love of Jesus Christ!  

Some of the folks we encounter may just “nibble” at the Truth we put in front of them, and “swim” away…but if they like what they heard-when the next person that ‘fishes’ for their soul comes along, they may just ‘bite’ and find Jesus.  The Bible says in Psalm 34:8, “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”

Walking along the beach of Lake Galilee, Jesus saw two brothers: Simon (later called Peter) and Andrew. They were fishing, throwing their nets into the lake. It was their regular work. Jesus said to them, “Come with me. I’ll make a new kind of fisherman out of you. I’ll show you how to catch men and women instead of perch and bass.” They didn’t ask questions, but simply dropped their nets and followed. -Matthew 4:19

Another version puts it this way…  Jesus said, “Come ·follow me [be my disciples], and I will ·make you [teach you how to] ·fish for people [T fishers of men].” -Matthew 4:19

No matter how hopeless things look in our search for the lost and dying…let us be like true fishermen…never giving up hope that the next person we talk to will come to know the Lord Jesus Christ in a personal way!

Now…LET’S GO FISHING!

Anita


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