Fishing Is Messy

I did a lot of fishing as a kid. I have memories of my friends and I waking up in the dark, riding our bikes with fishing poles in tow, to the river, to have our lures in the water by dawn. We fished like real fishermen. We kept and cleaned the fish we caught, and our families often ate them the same day. Fresh fish was a delicacy in my home.There aren’t very many fisherman who actually keep and clean fish anymore. When people tell me their fish stories, I ask, “Do you keep the fish you catch?” I’ll usually hear, “No, I don’t like to bother with the mess…” It’s one thing to enjoy the catch. It’s another to deal with the messy aftermath. But for me, the best part of fishing was the final outcome....dinner.I rarely fish anymore. But I take Jesus’ words to his first disciples personally, “I will make you fishers of men.” I view my life as that of fishing for followers of Jesus, and I try to keep the fish I catch. There is a rush in the initial catch, but the bigger thrill comes when you see the process completed. I said to friends the other night, “I get no greater joy than to see God change the lives of people.” I then added, “But fishing is messy.”In John 21, we love the story of Jesus telling his disciples to throw their nets on the other side of the boat, and when they did, they caught so much that the boat began to sink. Fishing is messy. Not only did they have to struggle to get themselves and their catch to shore, they then had loads of fish to clean and torn nets to repair. The success Jesus gave them added to their workload.I was sharing with someone recently a few stories of people whose lives are being changed in our church. As I spoke of the background of some new Christians here at The Bridge, and some of the struggles in overcoming their past, etc., he seemed to think that having to deal with such “messes” wouldn’t be worth it. I disagreed. It’s the mess that makes it all the more rewarding.We know we are called to fish for Jesus, but are we willing to deal with the mess of keeping and cleaning the fish we catch? But that’s part of it, and in fact, that’s where the real reward comes.I’m glad we have strong stable Christians here at The Bridge. But I am even more happy that we get to clean up messes. We are privileged to participate in God’s sanctification process in people’s lives, to help them become what God wants them to be. Sometimes it’s messy. But it is so worth it!