Ready to Fish

This week I updated my tackle box. I discarded rusty swivels, corroded hooks, and rigs tangled beyond repair. I put sharp hooks on lures that have many more casts left in them. I peeled away plastic worms that adhered to everything they touched as they became sticky with age and the heat of the Suncoast. (My wife was probably less-than-thrilled that I chose the family room for this task.) I sorted saltwater tackle from freshwater and placed it all neatly into my new tackle box (actually a Christmas present I hadn’t used yet).

It’s evident that I’m really looking forward to Friday’s fishing outing, but there are many things that remain for me to do. I haven’t decided yet which hat to wear – the ball cap with a tarpon on the front or the olive drab hat with a full brim and retaining strap. I’ve planned a trip to the grocery to get what is needed for everyone’s sandwiches. Then I’ll ice down the sodas, seal the hole in my bait bucket, check the tide chart…

After all that, I hope to find time to replace some of the ancient line on a couple of my reels. I am expecting at least one really big fish and need all the help I can get.

“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” With those simple words Jesus called Simon Peter and his brother Andrew to become His disciples. They left their nets, boats, and family to follow the Savior (Matthew 4:18-20). With that same invitation the Lord demonstrated that a major component of discipleship is evangelism. As believers, we must never forget our inherent responsibility to be soul winners. There is no way to genuinely follow Him and ignore lost people.

When convicted we say, “Lord, if you’ll bring someone my way I’ll witness to them.” That sure doesn’t sound much like my preparation for this weekend’s fishing trip. Where is my anxious anticipation? Where is the strategic planning? Where is my thoughtful and diligent effort?

The truth is that even when God directly answers this prayer, we forget our promise. He regularly brings people into our daily lives that need to hear the Gospel message. However, because of our business, selfishness, and timidity we say nothing to them.
I’m looking forward to an awesome time of exciting results at our fishing excursion. May God likewise give us hearts that are sincerely burdened for the lost.

Every Christian a Preacher

Each week I find myself looking forward to Sunday. I consider it a great privilege to be able to proclaim that Jesus is our risen Savior, especially on a day that marks the resurrection. It’s exciting to think that someone may hear the Gospel and respond for the first time in his life. I am blessed to be able to stand in front of a congregation and preach the same Gospel that the Apostle preached centuries ago.

But Paul Dwight Moody, the son of famous evangelist Dwight L. Moody, reminds us of a truth in the Easter sermon that he preached in 1910:

“All Christians should be preachers of the resurrection, for it is at the very core of our faith. If Christ rose not, then preaching and faith are alike vain, and of all men are we the most miserable. And though we may not be called upon to herald it in great cathedrals or crowded churches, still by life and word we are to declare that the Lord has risen.”

It is indeed our privilege to present the resurrection of Christ to those around us. But it is more than just an opportunity, it is our responsibility. Moody goes on to say:

“Every man or woman who takes upon himself the name of Christ honestly, subscribes to the belief that He rose from the grave and thereby witnesses to that belief. And this we must preach. And if the resurrection is real to us, we will. We must declare that the Lord is risen – that we have seen the Lord. And if we have, we will; for every true vision contains in it that which makes its beholder an evangelist. For the person fresh from contact with the living Lord there is only one thing to do: tell about it. Tell about it he will; the very light on his face would reveal that he had seen the Lord if his lips were dumb.”

If we believe it, we must preach it. Let someone hear your testimony this week. Demonstrate the love of God to someone in need. Invite a friend to attend church services with you this weekend. Allow your Christian witness to be seen and heard by those at work, at school, or in your family. We must all be preachers of the Good News!