A Guide to Fishing for People by Patty LaRoche

Jesus told his followers to be “fishers of men.”  I have known several serious fishermen, including one who is a professional.  He has learned the secrets of winning derbies by reeling in “the big one.”  Another friend recently posted pictures after landing an enormous bass, a fish he snared at the same place where my husband fishes and catches something akin to a pet goldfish.

Thankfully, Jesus was not saying that we had to be great fisher-people to fish for people. We do, however, need to demonstrate some of the skills employed by successful anglers, and as I write this list, I see where I fall short.

For one, we need to put in the effort, knowing that some days we might throw out our line multiple times but catch nothing.  Still, we have to try.  Sitting in our rowboats, staring at the water, praying for a 30-pound bass to jump into our vessels while telling others that we are “fishing” makes us look rather pathetic.  To truly excel in this skill, we need to do our homework.

The same applies for what Jesus meant. Fishing for men requires us to know what the Gospel says about salvation and be willing to share that knowledge by being sensitive to our listener.  Expecting people to show up at our door and ask to hear what they need to do to be saved just ain’t gonna happen.

Fishermen also need to know what bait to use.  Different seas and locations require research to know what the fish want. Bobbers or feathered lures or worms or cheese will likely have different results. If I were to share the Gospel with a farmer, my best approach would be to use agricultural terms like “sowing” and “reaping.”  Discussing what I know best (baseball or teaching) might cause my listeners to yawn or find an excuse to exit hastily to work their field.

Unfortunately, most of us might be good at talking about fishing, but Jesus never said, “Follow me and talk about evangelizing.”  We read Christian books (maybe even the Bible), attend conferences, listen to Podcasts and skim articles like this one.  We end up with a tackle box full of information and maybe even a few predictable questions (“If you were to die today, where would you end up?”).  Simply discussing what we know is not enough.  We are to act on what we know.

So, why is it so difficult to fish for people? Most Christians know they should evangelize but don’t know where to begin or how.  Researcher George Barna has discovered that nine out of ten people who attempt to explain what they believe to other people come away from those experiences feeling as if they failed. No wonder we don’t do much evangelism. It’s not fun to do something that makes us feel like a failure 90% of the time.

In Mark 16:15, Jesus commands us to “Go and preach the gospel to every creature.” No Christian can wriggle off the evangelism hook. We are to spread the good news about Jesus Christ by seeking opportunities wherever we go, and the best part of all is that we don’t have to seek only that 30-pound large-mouth bass.  Sometimes, a tiny little goldfish might be the biggest win of all.