Friday is usually the day that my husband likes to golf. Since we noticed that the last two times he walked the golf course he became dehydrated and ill, he decided to leave it alone this week. He walked into the kitchen on Thursday announcing that he had a GREAT idea and we would be going fishing the next day. I laughed all the way to Walmart as we purchased the fishing license and permit, along with the folding lawn chairs, live worms, tackle box and stink bait.
On Friday morning as the boys were getting dressed for school, he was preparing our lunch and snacks for this day. I tell you that this was so funny to me. Are we really about to go fishing? Mind you, neither of us knows how to fish!!!!
So after we dropped the boys off at school, we proceeded to the fishing hole not too far from the house. We drove around trying to find the right location, so we wouldn't disturb anyone else but that was an equally appealing area. After 10 minutes or so, we settled on a spot and began to unload the car. Both he and I were extremely giddy and excited to be able to sit quietly for a couple of hours without any interruptions.
I loaded the fishing rod carefully with the live worm as he situated the weights and the red & white bobber on the line. We were all set, so we cast the line and waited. He felt the tugging of the line and the adrenaline started pumping. Soon thereafter the bobber resurfaced, but when he reeled the line in there was no fish and the worm was gone. We simply laughed and threw the line out again. This was repeated 3 times without any success, so we decided to switch it up.
It was time to pull out the stink bait, which consisted of shrimp and chicken blood. Boy did it really STINK! We lost a couple of pieces, due to the bait falling off as we cast out the line. We simply reapplied the stink bait, cast the line and waited. Within 5 minutes, we had caught our first catfish. We were so surprised and exhilarated and repeated the same process. Two more catfish on the line!
We placed all the catfish in the ice chest and set out to do it again.
Up to this point Byron had been catching the fish, but this time I decided I wanted to hold the line. I loaded the stink bait, cast the line in the water, sat down in my lawn chair and waited. He and I sat there talking and watching the water move gently, until I felt tugging at the line and no longer saw the red and white bobber. My heart started racing and I stood up ready to reel in the line. I couldn't just yank the line though, I had to finesse it to make sure the fish actually had the bait and wasn't just playing around with me. Once I was confident that the fish was on the line, I began to reel it in. But as I reeled, the catfish fought back; I tugged and it tugged. I tugged some more and it pulled back. Eventually I won the exchange and had another catfish to add to the cooling chest.
Four catfish is definitely not bad for two individuals who DO NOT fish! ( I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried!) We paused long enough for me to get more ice and use the facilities. Upon my return, we repeated the process but nothing ever bit the line again. So for another hour we baited, we cast, we waited and nothing else happened. During that time we talked about what was different now and why the fish weren't biting. Then we reflected back to the moment that we caught the first fish and what we had done during that time.
God begin to show me something. Initially we used the worms because we were confident that the live bait would draw the fish. We repeated the process only to find out the method that we were using was not the best method. Although we were hesitant in using the stink bait, it would take the horrific aroma to draw the fish (blessings) toward us. It got me thinking about how God works in our lives sometimes through stinky situations.
So many times we follow the same patterns and are stuck in our way of doing things because we think it's the best method. Oftentimes the blessings do not come until we rest in the fact that God uses stinky situations to bless us. Maybe your stinky situation is the death of a loved one, the loss of a job or the end of a relationship. If we were to be honest with ourselves, we would realize that the blessing can't come until after the mess. It's in the messiness and the stinkiness that you realize you are no longer in control. It takes the horrific aroma to heighten your sense of awareness that God is right there in the midst of the situation.
So allow me to encourage you to keep fighting, keep praying, keep throwing the line but realize that you might have to change the bait. God can use the stink bait to attract your blessing. God can use the death of a loved one for you to realize the gifting that already lies within you. God can use the end of a relationship to catapult you into your destiny as you learn to hear and love the power of your own voice. God can even use the loss of a job for you to recognize that He is truly the source of your supply. What you're going through right now might not be pleasant, but rest assured that God can use your stink bait to attract the blessing and give you the victory in the end.
So don't run from the stinky situations, just ask God to show you what He wants you to learn as you sit and wait patiently on Him. Just as the catfish were in the water before we even arrived, so too is your blessing right there for you. Perhaps God is just waiting on you to switch it up and appreciate the stink bait.
Now walk it out....
If this blessed you, feel free to leave a message below.
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