God and Christ on Fishing

Have you ever stopped to think How Much of God's and Christ's Pearls of Wisdom have come from the fish in the waters around us?

Val and I had air tickets given to us in October on our 50^th Wedding anniversary to fly up to Brett and Tina on the Gold Coast for ten Days in February 2008, as it would be Val's Birthday. Brett took the four of us out to a sumptuous dinner on Saturday Night. Sunday morning a phone call, from Bev Alderson, Val's Bridesmaid of 50 Years ago, Maurice and Bev who had come from New Zealand for Bev's Brother's 70th Birthday, asked us if we would like them to pick us up on their way to Southport for the Meeting, then come back to Jimmy's Birthday on the Sunday Afternoon. . All his Brothers and Sisters and Spouses had come from everywhere for Jimmy's Birthday on Sunday Afternoon. Maurice and Bev picked us up early Sunday morning and took us to the Meeting at Southport. We caught up with many of our old friends Brethren and Sisters from previous years. So our great holiday started off with a bang. We had a magic time.

Brett had asked me if I could go in to his work and help, as his partner had gone for a week's holiday. We set off at 7.30 AM. To do a 12 hour day's work.. Started off being promoted, demoted, placed in charge of quality control. banking, coffee maker, floor sweeper and saving all the accounts, even forwarding logos to a Business in Brisbane. This kept us busy from Monday to Saturday night. All 6 days, some 72 hours of what I thought was hard work. I loved doing it and thoroughly enjoyed it.

"They say a bad day's fishing beats a good day at the office every time."

I personally do not attest to that feeling as I am not inclined to fishing, love eating, just not fussy about catching it.

In Queensland, there's no such thing as a bad day's fishing.

This little poem was underneath the sign.

The Fisherpeople

Our hopes are the baited hook

That we cast into the sea

The fish are our dreams

Which we bring to shore to eat

Our desire is to throw the line

The furthest that we can

While our lives are the sun that sets

Upon our home this land

For we are the people

Like the thunder is of the clouds

Our love is the lightning flash

That can be seen for miles around

And the moon that rises to its peak

Is our heart that keeps a steady beat

For the people who are natures gift.

Like the Stars that Shine with Peace.

There were lots of small signs of Brett and Peter's office. They all offered some crazy message or a Pearl of Wisdom

The customers were non stop on that first Monday. One of Brett's clients came in and made a comment about the fishing on the week end and to my total amazement, Brett launched in to a fish story about how his Dad had gone Barramundi fishing some thirty years ago in Queensland and caught a Barramundi that was almost as big as his father. He was proud of his Father and related the story with relish, of how his father had caught all these huge fish all by himself. Taken it on the aeroplane and had to pay for the seat for a frozen fish. He finished this wonderful embellished story by telling the client it had taken us six months to get through eating same and the scales were bigger than a 50 cent piece. He even managed to produce a photo of his Father holding this mighty fish up in the air. I had forgotten about this photo.

Just over thirty years ago I had to go to Gladstone in Queensland to see one of my larger clients. This entailed three different aeroplane flights and a two hour drive by car. Almost 12 hours of movement or sitting around airports. Finally arrived and within three hours I had completed every thing and all papers had been signed. No plane for 24 hours. My client said we were going Barramundi fishing. My mind was bewildered. I had been fishing twice in my life. Not impressed Recounted prior in another Hub. 'A bad day's fishing beat a good day at the Office."

When I left to go to the Airport, Jim Gave me the largest Barramundi, litteraly frozen solid. All wrapped up in silver foil, weighing a ton. This fish was almost as tall as me. When I arrived to catch the plane, the desk people charged me another full fare to bring the Barramundi back to Sydney. They told me, to place Barra on the seat next to me, and then they brought the passengers through to look at it.

As much as we loved the great fish, I made a resolution, never to go fishing again. Three times was enough for me.

Most of the time I was SCARED STIFF. This was a small part of a Previous Hub

"A bad day's fishingis better than a good day at the Office."

As I heard Brett recount this illusionary story of the large fish his father had caught, so many years ago: -

My mind leapt to the feeding of the 5,000

Matthew 14:13-21

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns.

14

When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

15

As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food."

16Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat."

17

"We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered.

18

"Bring them here to me," he said.

19

And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.

20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Matthew 15:29-39

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

29 Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down.

30 Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.

31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

32 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way."

33 His disciples answered, "Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?"

34 "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked.

"Seven," they replied, "and a few small fish."

35 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground.

36 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people.

37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

38 The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children.

Matthew 13:47-50

The Parable of the Net

47 "The kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish.

48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away.

49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous

50 throwing them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

When we read of the waters of the sea and the oceans relating to fish.

How many time has God or Christ given us Pearls of Wisdom out of the sea?

Mark 1:16-20

16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.

17" Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."

18 At once they left their nets and followed him.

19 When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets.

20 Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

Jonah 1:1-17

Jonah Flees From the LORD

1 The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai:

2 "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me."

3 But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.

4 Then the LORD sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.

5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.

But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.

6 The captain went to him and said, "How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us, and we will not perish."

7 Then the sailors said to each other, "Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity." They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.

8 So they asked him, "Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?"

9 He answered, "I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land."

10 This terrified them and they asked, "What have you done?" (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.)

11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, "What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?"

12 "Pick me up and throw me into the sea," he replied, "and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you."

13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.

14 Then they cried to the LORD, "O LORD, please do not let us die for taking this man's life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O LORD, have done as you pleased."

15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.

16 At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him.

17 But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.

Jonah 2:1-10

Jonah's Prayer

1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. 2 He said:

"In my distress I called to the LORD,

and he answered me.

From the depths of the grave ^[a] I called for help,

and you listened to my cry.

3 You hurled me into the deep,

into the very heart of the seas,

and the currents swirled about me;

all your waves and breakers

swept over me.

4 I said, 'I have been banished

from your sight;

yet I will look again

toward your holy temple.'

5 The engulfing waters threatened me, ^[b]

the deep surrounded me;

seaweed was wrapped around my head.

6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down;

the earth beneath barred me in forever.

But you brought my life up from the pit,

O LORD my God.

7 "When my life was ebbing away,

I remembered you, LORD,

and my prayer rose to you,

to your holy temple.

8 "Those who cling to worthless idols

forfeit the grace that could be theirs.

9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving,

will sacrifice to you.

What I have vowed I will make good.

Salvation comes from the LORD."

10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

John 21:1-13

Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish

1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias^] It happened this way:

2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together.

3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"

"No," they answered.

6 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.

7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water.

8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards

9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."

11 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.

12 Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord.

13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.

1 Corinthians 15:39-56

39 All flesh is not the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.

40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendour of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendour of the earthly bodies is another.

41 The sun has one kind of splendour, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendour.

42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;

43 it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

45 So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.

46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.

47 The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.

48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven.

49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we^[b] bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

50 I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed-

52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true:

"Death has been swallowed up in victory."

55 "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.