So I've started fishing lately. I love it. I get up early (5:30 a.m.), pick a spot with a friend, and start casting. The problem so far this year is that I haven't caught a thing. Well, other than snags, trees, rocks, and about anything else you can find in a lake other than a fish. So I started thinking. Jesus might have been onto something when he said he'd make us fishers of men. I mean, I know they used different methods of fishing then, but it still works darnit.
I start by waking up, getting dressed, and breaking out my equipment. I then, must find a spot I believe will be conducive to catching fish. I settle down and start throwing out a lure, hoping this is something they will like to eat. After casting a few times I decide if this spot is a viable option for catching fish or if I might need to move further up or down stream. If I'm getting a few nibbles I can discern fairly well that the spot and the lure are probably good for my purposes. If nothing is biting I usually will try a few different lures before moving on to another spot.
There will always be times when you fish and don't catch a thing. There will also, almost definitely, be times you catch so many fish you know there was something other than you that made that possible. So it is in life, when fishing for men you will have times you spend so much time and so much energy trying to catch someone but you just can't get them to bite. There will be other times, though, where you will feel like you didn't even need to be there; the fish would have just jumped into your boat without any offering other than "here is my boat."
Just as in fishing, I believe you must prepare to fish for men. Being awake helps the preparation, and I mean this in a spiritual sense as well as in the physical. I get dressed by praying and listening to the words of God. It protects me from spiritual sunburn (going into a situation unprepared). I check my equipment, which I believe Paul does a great job of illustrating with his Armor of God.
Many times, finding the proper spot to fish is the key behind how successful your endeavor will be. If you don't find a place where these men for which you are fishing congregate, you will never get the chance that they will notice your lure. You will continue casting, oblivious that there are no men gathering here to even glance upon what you are offering. Yet, if you find the proper arena in which to cast your lure, you will be rewarded with many interested men.
If you find no interested men, you must first try offering your message in a different way, because where some men will scoff at a minnow they will engulf a frog. Not all people will respond to a message that tells them they are worthless. Some will only respond to a message that God has made them worthy. Sometimes, though, you will find a spot as Jesus did in his hometown which will not respond to you no matter how you offer you message. As Christ told his disciples, you must brush the dust off your feet and move on to the next town.
I write all these words to say this: Jesus is your fishing map, your river guide, even the reason that we fish. So in all your endeavors in fishing for men, make certain you have your map/guide, and don't despair if you catch nothing one day, because there are just certain spots at certain times that will be unproductive for you. You will catch the fish Jesus asks you to, though, as long as you keep fishing.
