We were fortunate enough to stay in a prophet chamber in Rome, New York recently after a meeting. A member of the church where we presented the work offered to take Isaiah and me fishing one morning. It was Isaiah’s first fishing trip. He had been asking for sometime to go fishing and now he was very excited about the opportunity. As much energy as Isaiah has I was curious how he would respond, especially if the fish were not biting. Turns out he didn’t want to stop. We left at 7:00 in the morning and took a boat out on Delta Lake. We didn’t catch anything but we had a great time.
The Lord likened fishing to soul winning so there are many spiritual applications that can be made to fishing, here are just a few thoughts I had…
The fish sometimes aren’t biting. You can no more force someone to be saved than you can force a fish to take the bait. Sometimes, for what ever reason, people are not responsive to the gospel and one needs to move on to another “fishing hole.” That doesn’t mean that the “fish” won’t be responsive another day.
Some fish respond differently than others. The type of lure, speed of the reel, etc., are all very important. Some people respond quicker than others to the gospel. Sometimes it is required to be more blunt and confrontational and other times it is required to be more sensitive and patient in your dealings with a soul. It is the same gospel but it is never a “cookie-cutter” approach – people are individuals and respond to different means.
You learn best how to fish from an experienced fisherman. I was never real comfortable witnessing until I went on door-to-door visitation with a great soul winner named Tom. I thank the Lord that He put Tom in my life to show me how to fish for men.
“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:19
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