A
recent survey asked people over 95 years of age what they would do differently
if they could live their lives again. Here are the top three changes they
would make:
"Following and Fishing"by Richard Meyer |
to invite small groups to love one another, encourage one another, bear one another's burdens, & pray for one another. |
A
recent survey asked people over 95 years of age what they would do differently
if they could live their lives again. Here are the top three changes they
would make:
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea - for they were fisherman. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately, they left their boat and their father, and followed him (Matthew 4:18-22 NRSV).
Note the call. Jesus invited the disciples, and us, to "follow" and "fish."
Follow
In rabbinic speech, "Follow me," meant, "Become my students. Be apprenticed to me. Join my school. Live with me." In Jesus' day students lived with their rabbis; they did not merely attend their lectures. This is not a call to believe. It is a call to learn. It is a call to discipleship. It is a call to commitment.
In January, my staff, my church board, and all my committee chairs discussed a book The Purpose Driven Church by Rick Warren. In the book Warren likens "following Christ" to circling a baseball diamond. First base is membership knowing Christ and joining a church. Second base is maturity a commitment to grow in Christ. Third base is ministry using our spiritual gifts and talents. Home base is missions sharing Christ with others.
This is what Jesus calls us to do. He calls us to circle the bases to learn, to grow, and to mature in our faith.
Fish
But then Jesus calls us to do something else. He calls us to "fish." To be honest, I hate to fish. I hate the thought of baiting a hook or taking the fish off the hook. In fact, I can remember when I worked for the "Y" in Boise, Idaho and some guys took me fishing. It was one of the most boring days of my life. Thankfully, the water was so clear that whenever I saw a fish near my line, I just reeled in the line so I wouldn't have to catch the fish and take it off the hook. Not only that, to lure or bait a different species out of their natural environment seemed cruel. It still does.
And that's how many view fishing for people. They'd rather pass on the entire experience.
But what if Peter, Andrew, James and John had been construction workers? If the first disciples had had tool belts around their waists instead of fishing nets over their shoulders, I bet Jesus would have said something like, "Come, follow me and I will make you builders of people."
Either way, as fishers of people or builders of people, Jesus calls us to do the same thing: invest in people. Give ourselves to people. Build people up.
I recently used this fishing story (Jesus calling the disciples) with children in worship. I held a fishing pole and I asked them, "If I wanted to catch fish, what would I put on this hook?" They said things like, "Worms," "Bread," "Cheese," "Fish guts." I then asked them, "And if I wanted to catch people, what would I put on the hook." They said, "Money," "Candy," "Movie tickets," "Love."
Out of the mouths of babes!!! Follow and fish.
Group Reflections