Teach A Man To Fish

"He called out to them, Friends, haven't you any fish? 'No,' they answered. He said, 'Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.' when they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish" (John 21:5-6).

Give a man a fish and he eats for a day.  Teach him how to fish and you get rid of him for the whole weekend.

After fishing for walleye all day and not getting so much as a bite, the fisherman went back to shore, loaded up his boat and began driving home.  He stopped at a fish market. "Throw me six of the biggest fish you have," he said to the proprietor.  "Throw them? Why?"  "Because I'm going to catch them.  I may be a lousy fisherman, but I'm not a liar."

Many people "poo"-"poo" on these Biblical stories as just stories but not really true.  The Bible has a way of giving proof of the truth to these narratives.  "Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore.  It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn" (John 21:11).   Let us take a close look at this narrative.  First, it is John writing, he mentions Simon Peter:  note this, Simon Peter; there can be no mistake who he is talking about and if this story was made up Peter would probably had some words with John.  Why do I state that fact, because unlike today, they relied on each others word, oral contracts, a man was only as good as his word.  Second, 153 fish, why give us the count?  Because there was a tax on all fish caught and they counted the fish to know how much the tax would be.  This is not some cute story as the above anecdotes address, this was a real event that has real meaning.  Jesus' appearing after His resurrection gave proof that He was still alive and was truly the Messiah.

Many people dislike religion and try their best to condemn those who practice religion.  I too am among those who dislike "religion" for in its name many horrible events took place in history and even in our day.  Jesus was not about religion, he spoke against religion.  What was He for?  You! He came only to save mankind and gave us standards that if obeyed would provide guidance to avoid trouble.  Look at any problem, measure against the standard, and you will find that if that standard had been followed the problem would not exist. 

You can play like a fisherman and catch fish from a market far from the watery shores but even then it is only a liar couched in a facsimile of truth.  Hope that man's wife never goes to that market for the liar might come to light.  Notice this, our sins will catch up to us.  Believe and follow God's righteous standards and see for yourself if following them does not lead to a better life. Try it! You might like it!

Daily Prayer:

Father may you have Your way with me.  Lead me and guide me, teach me Your way, Your standards, and give to me the wisdom to abide by them.  Help me to show others the path, Your path that leads to eternal life. Thank You Jesus for saving me and for sending to me Holy Spirit for comfort and guidance so that when I make decisions He will guide me to Your Truths.  May I listen to You only and not to the world for only You have what I need.                                   Amen