What kind of fish hook should a person use in order to catch fish? If you are not a fisherman you might not ever give that a thought. If, however, you want to catch fish, it does make a difference. Are you fishing freshwater or saltwater? It makes a difference. You might not have even known fish hooks have sizes. Weird, the larger the hook number, the smaller the hook. Then when you go the other way, as the aught gets bigger the hooks get bigger. Are you fishing for trout or tuna? Ok, you know this is not a fishing lesson…especially from a guy that does not fish. Then what is it about? We are, as Jesus said, fishers of men. That is part of our calling as disciples, followers of Jesus. Sometimes we are fishing for little fish and sometimes we are fishing for the BIG one. We do not always use the same size hooks or the same kind of bait. The Gospel is always the same, but the methods vary depending on who we are going after.
Much of our fishing for men is done in what we call the “Community”. Most of the people in our community are not that interested in organized religion. So offering Bible Studies is not great bait for them. What might interest them is a Fall Festival where families can come to have fun in a family friendly environment. Another way to attract “Community” is our Weekday Preschool Ministry. Laura Holmes and her team do a great job of providing reasonably priced child care in a loving environment. Celebrate Recovery is a unique type of hook trying to reach people who are ready to change and recognize that Jesus Christ is the Higher Power. Those are three different types of “fish” requiring three different types of “hooks” but all of them motivated by the same Gospel.
What I love about our JIBC family is that you are fishing all over our community, using a variety of hooks and a variety of “baits and lures”. As you follow Jesus he leads you to sprits outings, to coach teams, to join clubs, go to events, watch ballgames…all places where we can find all types of “fishes”.
We have been commissioned by our Lord Jesus to go into the entire world and catch fish…to be fishers of men and to make them disciples. Keep up the great work.
Dear Father, I pray for your people known as James Island Baptist. May we be faithful to your call to become fishers of men. Give us wisdom, compassion, eyes to see, ears to hear and hearts ready for action. May there be a bigger catch this year than ever before. May we have the joy that comes from seeing changed lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Love you all,
Pastor Tom
