The Fisherman

We must also understand, like the disciples, that being a fisherman is hard work and not always as rewarding as we would hope. If we were to go fishing on Saturday morning, we would not lay back and take it easy until noon and then go and expect to make a good catch. We have to be up early and willing to get out of our comfortable home and head out into the cold and darkness of night. It has been my experience that the best times to catch fish are at dusk and dawn, the very times most of us like to rest.

Jesus didn’t make excuses or take the easy way through life. His life is our example of one who would give their all to catch men’s souls.

John 9:4, "I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work."

There are times when people are more open to the message of the gospel. When they are facing a bad report from the doctor, when disaster has overtaken them, when the trials of life become almost unbearable, when there is no one else to turn to, that’s when people are most open to the gospel.

In the late hours of the evening and in the early hours of the morning, we can hear the cry of the heart of men, women, boys and girls as they are crying out for help. People everywhere are hurting because pain is an inescapable part of life. Every day I hear the cries of people as they are searching for answers, searching for a reason to live, and searching for hope. Child of God, that’s your signal to cast in your line and draw in the fish! They are hungry and will grasp at anything that looks good.

Have you ever tried to catch a fish in the heat of the day, with the air very still, the sun beaming down, and no movement upon the water? It’s nearly impossible to catch fish under those circumstances.

I find it so very hard to witness of the gospel when people are doing well. When the sun is shining brightly down upon their lives, and there is not a care in the air, when their bills are paid, the doctor’s report is good and there is no trouble visible on the horizon, you will have a hard time convincing most people that they need a savior. I know that there are exceptions to every rule but, generally, that’s the way things go.

In the dark hours of life when it seems that the weight of the world has come down upon their shoulders, that’s when people are ready to hear. When the dark clouds of despair and the darkness of night begin to loom over their lives, that’s when people will turn to God. It is a shame that men wait until their well runs dry, so to speak, before they begin to dig a new well. It’s too bad that so many people wait until life has nearly destroyed them before turning to God.

Jesus has given us the chance for an abundant life, but He won’t force us to enjoy it. That choice is ours.

Another thing that the disciples knew, as fishermen, was that if you are going to catch fish you had better have a good supply of bait and a good variety of bait. I realize that most of the time they used seine nets instead of bait, but for you and I, we need to have the right bait because we aren’t professional.