Fresh Start Devotionals

Fishing I never really fished much when I was young, but I always wanted to. One of my grandfathers was an avid fisherman, and I did go out with him a few times, but I don’t really remember ever catching a fish with him. Grumps was serious about his fishing, but not quite as serious at teaching his grandchildren to fish. There is an old saying, “you can go fishing or you can take a boy fishing, but you can’t do both.” I suppose Grumps chose to do the former rather than the latter. Growing up, we didn’t really live next to water. Oh, there were a few catfish ponds on some of the West Texas ranches, and I do recall my Dad taking me out a couple of times, but I don’t remember catching any fish. For many years, fishing was something I’d attempt to do on vacations, but was never any good at it until I finally broke down and asked a friend for help. Almost fifteen years ago, we moved to Central California near several lakes and many of the men in the church were accomplished fishermen. I bought all the equipment and fished faithfully, but was never successful at it until I finally broke down and asked one of the men for some pointers. He spent several hours with me teaching me the basics then turned me loose fishing. No, I didn’t become a fisherman overnight, but with time, I learned to view a body of water and know where the fish are and how to present the bait to them. With enough practice, I learned how to land a fish by the way it feels on the line. Now, I fish with confidence whether I’m on the ocean or a in a mountain stream. And most of the time I do more than just fish, I catch. There is no substitute for experience, but the turning point for me was mustering up the courage to ask a friend for help. “A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:” (Proverbs 1:5 KJV) Jim L. Wilson, Fresh Start Devotionals (Fresno, CA: Willow City Press, 2009).