There’s something soothing about water that helps you relax and enjoy the day the Lord has given to you. But what will you do with your time? Maybe you will decide to sunbathe, or maybe you will do a little fishing. I used to love to fish. I would sit there, enjoying my surroundings, listening to the water lap against the shore, while I waited for a fish to bite. So relaxing!
There is a great lesson in fishing:
Whenever you catch a fish, you usually put that fish on a line with other fish caught, and then you place that line in shallow water. Why? Because if you kept them out of the water, they would all die. You need to keep the fish alive and fresh as long as possible before cooking them later.
Have you ever seen a fish out of water? It panics, flops in different directions and eventually dies a very slow death.
I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you (Psalm 119:10–11 NIV).
We, like those fish, need to stay fresh in our relationship with Christ. We need to be in God’s Word on a daily basis, and we need to be in constant communication with God. If we let our day-to-day lives come between us and God’s Word, we will become like a fish out of water. Problems will come; we will panic and start flopping in different directions. And eventually we will die slowly inside.
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads (Deuteronomy 11:18 NIV).
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away (Matthew 24:35 NIV).
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God (Colossians 3:16 ESV).
If we have His Word in our hearts, we will live productive lives for Him. So, we need to make an effort not only to read from His Word daily, but also to ponder those words in our hearts. It will keep us fresh and alive!
Even though I no longer go fishing, I am still a “fisher of men” for Christ. At times, I may not catch any “fish,” but this is one occupation I will never give up. Won’t you join me? Let’s cast our nets and wait for that big “catch of the day.”
Debbie Mitchell