No joke, my biggest fear, in all honesty:
Lake Monsters.
Over the weekend, on our time off, I spent several hours on a boat, going out onto the open water…nerve-racking.
This afternoon, I decided to go outside for some Jesus time: in front of a HUGE lake.
While sitting out back on a bench, reading my Bible, listening to “This is the Giant” on my I-pod, and writing a new poem…God brought something to my attention, that became quite a profound moment.
I saw a peculiar sight on the lake.
There was one fellow who was fishing while standing in the water, maybe twenty feet out from the shore. He was throwing out his net, then proceeded to dive under the water for long periods of time (Dude swam like a boss).
He was doing this throughout the lake, not just in one place. Wherever he thought there may be fish:
THAT’S WHERE HE WENT.
Not long after, I saw another man further out into the lake. He was simply paddling out into the middle of the water, with nothing more than an inner tube and a little bamboo paddle.
All of this made me think.
How often do we play it safe, standing at the shore, trying to catch a fish and have little to no luck?
You may catch a nibble, maybe a few small fry here and there.
But OUT THERE…
In the middle of the lake:
That’s where the schools of fish are
OUT THERE in the DEEP SEA
THAT is where the BIG FISH are
I think it’s time to stop taking the safe route of “going fishing”, standing where we stay perfectly dry and allow our reel to do all the legwork for us.
It’s time to jump all in!
Don’t expect the schools of fish to come to you.
Jesus went to the people.
He met them where they were at, speaking to them in terms they understood
(Notice he only spoke to the religious leaders with Scripture, and to the Gentiles and sinners He spoke with common language and parables).
He got down to their level, swimming out to meet them in the middle of the waters.
Think about it:
You can’t rescue someone who’s drowning in the middle of the lake by simply shouting at them from the water’s edge.
It takes taking off your shoes
And jumping in after them!
The question is:
How bad do you truly want to see that person rescued?
I am afraid of lake monsters, as mentioned before.
But that’s a fear that I am willing to overcome, if it means catching some fish.
Fear keeps us at a distance, standing on the outside looking in.
But God asked us to be participants and team players;
Never just spectators.
All this brings to mind Jesus inviting the first disciples to be “fishers of men”.
It reminds me of Jesus calling Peter to step out of the safety of the boat, and join Him out on the water.
It reminds me of one of my favorite Gwen Stacy songs, that closes with the line:
“Step out onto the water, stop staring at the waves”
I’ve played it safe and took the lazy route to fishing sometimes. But I’m willing to punch fear in the face and dive headfirst into the water.
What’s your fear, keeping you safe and sound, when God’s asking you to step out onto the water?
Or
When having a heart for those are lost, or desperate, or in need, and you wanna see them find and experience love (and more specifically the love of Jesus):
How bad do you want it?
