Born Fisherman

A little fisherman stood by the edge of a lake.  He was small in stature because he was only 6 years old.  He had a cane pole, three times as long as he was tall, slung over his shoulder with a worm and plastic bobber.   He may have been smaller than his fellow fishermen, but that was not important to “Little Bit” at all; that’s what everyone called him because he had more confidence than most grown men in his ability to catch fish.  “Little Bit” had earned the title, and his confidence, by out-catching most of the experienced older fishermen.  Christian, his proper name, had been fishing since he was three.  He started with a child’s plastic fishing pole, and graduated to the adult size with great proficiency.  The regulars around town fished this lake often, and Christian had earned quite a powerful reputation.

The lake sparkled with diamond droplets as the morning sun rippled across its surface.  Christian’s eyes squinted against the glare as he surveyed the large lake with a practiced eye.  He finally cast his line with worm and bobber into an eddy where a few limbs were sunken below the water’s surface.  Christian took this sport very seriously, and now that he was six, he had become quite the professional.   

Many of the fishermen had been fishing along the lake for a couple of hours without much luck.  Several anglers had sophisticated spinning reels and jigs; others were fly fishing with an expert twist of the wrist, but without any luck.  Christian tossed his line out with the worm and red plastic bobber in his chosen spot.  As the lakeside fishermen predicted, he started pulling in fish after fish from the murky water.  Everyone watched and shook their head as they watched “Little Bit” catch a mess of fish with essentially no effort.   Christian took all of this success in stride and kept fishing, confounding everyone around him.

This fishing skill followed Christian as he grew into a young man.   He fished at every opportunity he could, and described himself as a “simple man” since his only real joy came from being outdoors fishing and hunting.   He became a journeyman in air conditioning and electrical work to support his small family.   But every minute, when he was not working, he spent his time on lakes, rivers, and Gulf fishing.  He graduated to more expensive gear: a large bass boat with complicated rods and reels.  His fishing gear had been updated to top-notch, but his skill and luck remained the same.  He always caught fish when no one else could.  He began to sign up for big fishing tournaments every year and won the big pots almost every time.  He was not limited in his luck to fishing; it also carried over into hunting deer, elk, and wild hog.  He had various shot-guns and rifles for this sport that he carefully racked and cleaned often for optimum shooting.  In fact, if he weren’t fishing or hunting, you could always catch him in his man cave, preparing for the next sporting event.

Life changes:

Christian always loved the fall season, and particularly, he enjoyed this time of year in the back woods of Georgia.  He and his son, Jake, now a teenager, were in the mountains of Georgia and were headed to set up their camping site on a hunting lease.  Hunting season was in full swing, and he was primed for a big buck. The weather had dropped off to cooler temperatures, and the hills were decorated with leafy red and orange trees; goldenrods lined the roads like yellow soldiers.  Christian and his son were on a paved, rural back road, in Georgia with many dips and hills to maneuver.  Waylon Jennings was blasting from the radio as they rode with their arms propped on the open windows.  The chilly wind whistled through the truck, invigorating the two men.  Life couldn’t get any better!

Christian topped the hill, going a little faster than he should have been going.  There was not a lot of traffic on these back roads.  As he crested the hill, he saw a small compact car that appeared to be going down the mountain in the same direction he was.  At first, he didn’t notice that the car had come to a complete stop.  It did not have brake lights or tail lights signaling that the vehicle was stopped, so at first glance, he thought it was moving, that is until it was too late.  Almost instantaneously, Christian realized there were two people sitting in the car.  Christian screamed for his son to hang on, because he knew he was going to rear-end the vehicle.  

Miraculously, by luck or divine intervention, Christian turned his steering wheel hard to the left as he impacted the front vehicle still sitting at a dead stop.  By doing this maneuver, the tires of the truck rode right over the smaller car and between the two people sitting in the front, destroying the car, but avoiding direct contact with the occupants.   Christian could have not veered completely to the left lane because a truck was coming directly at him.  Christian drove a large Dodge Ram with over-size tires.  This was his hunting truck, and he also used it to pull his large bass boat.  

All Christian remembered was sitting in stunned silence in a completely destroyed truck and saying, “Please God, help me!”  Somehow or another he missed the oncoming vehicle, and the people in the stranded car were unhurt. 

But, both vehicles were a total loss. Christian and his son were shaken up, but uninjured.  

Christian said he had a clear epiphany as he surveyed the damage and close call he and his son had along with the scary realization that he could have badly injured the occupants of the other car, he said it was crystal clear God was telling him he was carrying his passion for fishing and hunting to the extreme.  Previously, Christian had ignored family and friends to do “his thing.”  The fact that his son was along on this rare occasion made him realize he did not include family on most of the excursions.  Also, he realized this life could be over in a split second.

Christian returned home a different man than when he had left early that morning.  He would not give up fishing and hunting, but he realized it had become an addiction rather than an enjoyable sport.  Christian decided to put his life in order: God first, family second, and then his beloved sport.  Immediately, he began attending church with his wife and son.  Now, ball games and other important events involving his son became his focus.  To this day, Christian still loves to fish and hunt but it’s no longer the most important thing in his life.  When people get their priorities in order, order comes into their lives as God directs their path.