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"the fishermen"
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or
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"for they hear thy words, but they do them not"
Now it came to pass that a group existed who called themselves fisherman.  And lo, there were many fish in the waters all around.  In fact, the whole area was surrounded by streams and lakes filled with fish.  And the fish were hungry.
Week after week, month after month, and even year after year, those who called themselves fishermen met in meetings and talked about their call to fish, the abundance of fish, and how they might go about fishing.  Year after year they carefully defined what fishing means.  They defended fishing as an occupation, and declared that fishing is always to be a primary task of fishermen.
 
These fishermen built large, beautiful buildings for local fishing headquarters.  The plea was that everyone should be a "fisherman" and every fisherman should fish.  However, one thing they began not doing; They didn't 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 the great vision and courage to speak about fishing, to define fishing, to promote fishing in far away streams and lakes where many other fish of different colors and fins lived.  Also, the board hired staffs and appointed committees.  These committees held many meetings to define fishing, to defend fishing, to decide what new streams should be thought about.  It was established that these committee members did not fish.
 
Large, elaborate, and expensive training centers were built whose original and primary purpose was to teach fishermen how to fish, the nature of fish, how to define fish, the psychological reactions of fish, and how to approach and feed fish.  Those who taught had doctorates in "Fishology."  Again, the teachers did not fish.  They only taught 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 caught two outstanding fish.  He was honored for his excellent catch and scheduled to visit all the upcoming Big meetings to tell about the experience to other fishermen to tell how he did it.  So, he quit his fishing in order to have time to tell about the experience.
 
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 the ridicule of some who made fun of their fishermen's clubs and the fact that they claimed to be fishermen yet, they never fished.  They wondered about those who felt it was little use to attend and talk about fishing.  After all, were "they" not following the Master who said, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men".
 
In closing, imagine how hurt some were, when one day, a person suggested that those who don't fish were not really fishermen, no matter how much they claimed to be.
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.....(Author unknown)
"if"
"why"
"intro"
"gideon"
"footwashing"
"the fishermen"
"the experience"
"servant or clone"
 "the gospel for dummies"
"how to collect brownie points"
 "establishing who the gospel is for"
"Jesus is coming - don't get bogged down"
 "beyond a popcorn testimony - "why we quit"
 "beware of more diversions and obstacles"
"hath not one God created us?"
"the evangelical subculture"
"church is fantastic 1"
"church is fantastic 2"
"discerning the body"
"a good keen soldier"
 "the amateur scribe"
 "peruse guestbook"
 "sign guestbook"
"membership"
"linking"
"email"
 "home
"if"