Moving The Mouse...(Part Three) The Fisherman

(This is part three of a four-part series entitled "Moving the Mouse." The big image that we are using - that of moving a computer mouse around in order to look busy - serves as a backdrop metaphor to challenge the oftentimes pointless busyness associated with modern day ministry that has little to do with the call of Christ to simply go. Today, I borrow a great parable entitled "The Parable of The Fisherman" that I first heard when I was in seminary. The author remains anonymous. The message is powerful. Enjoy).

THE PARABLE OF THE FISHERMAN

Now it came to pass that a group existed who called themselves fishermen. And lo, there were many fish in the streams and lakes throughout the surrounding area....Week after week, month after month, and year after year, those who called themselves fishermen met in meetings and talked about: the call to fish; the abundance of fish; and, how they might go about pursuing fishing as an occupation. They declared that fishing is always to be the primary task of fishermen. But, they never fished.... These fishermen built large, beautiful buildings for local fishing headquarters. The plea was that everyone should be a fisherman and every fisherman should fish. One thing they didn’t do, however, was fish.... In addition to meeting regularly, they organized a board to send out fishermen to other places where there were many fish. The board was formed by those who had great vision and courage to speak about fishing, to define fishing, to promote the idea of fishing in far-away streams and lakes where many other fish of different colors & sizes lived. Also, the board hired staffs and appointed committees and held many meetings to: define fishing; defend fishing; and to, decide what new streams should be thought about and studied. Many people began to get into the fishing supply business because they didn't feel that fishing was their call or gifting. But, at the end of the day, nobody went fishing... A speaker bureau was provided to schedule special speakers on the subject of fishing. After one stirring meeting on “The Necessity of Fishing,” one young fellow left the meeting and actually went fishing. The next day he reported that he had caught two outstanding fish. He was honored for his excellent catch and he was scheduled to visit all the big meetings to share how he did it. So, he quit fishing in order to have time to tell about his experience to the other fishermen. He was also placed on the Fisherman’s General Board as a person having considerable experience. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in Fishology and was asked to attend an International Conference in Switzerland on world fishing where he was a keynote speaker. But, he never again went fishing... Now it’s true that many of the fishermen sacrificed and put up with all kinds of difficulties. Some lived near the water and bore the smell of dead fish. They received ridicule of some who made fun of their fishermen’s clubs and the fact that they claimed to be fishermen, yet never fished. They wondered about those who felt it was of little use to attend the talks about fishing. After all, were they not following the Master, who said, “Follow Me, and I will make you to become a fisher of men”? (Mark 1:17)... Imagine how hurt some were when one day a person suggested that those who didn’t fish were not really fishermen, no matter how much they claimed to be. Yet it did sound correct. Is a person a fishermen if, year after year, he never catches a fish? Is one following if he isn’t fishing?