Devotion 6 - Fishing With Paul

2 Corinthians 6:3-10 (New International Version)
Paul's Hardships

3 We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. 4 Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5 in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6 in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7 in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; 8 through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9 known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10 sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

I went fishing with Paul last month. You know PAUL -the Apostle. We didn't catch a single fish all day but that's how it goes sometimes. OK, maybe his name was Roscoe. And maybe he's the young minister at the church my daughter and her family started attending when they moved to upstate New York. and by God's own providence he's a Fly Fisherman. But it did feel a little like talking to Paul - on a good day.

Roscoe and I had quite a bit of time to get to know each other as we drove to a couple of favorite fishing spots. I learned a little about how hard it is to start a church from "scratch". Roscoe told me about the first meeting of the church and how he hung around the door to see if anyone would come. A few did, not very many. He told me about the support he had had through all this - primarily from God and from his wife. But also from his wife's home church several miles away -they sent a few members for several months to run the nursery, greet visitors, do whatever it took to get the fledgling church up and going. And there was some financial support from other churches and folks. Money to pay for a place to meet ad buy those bare essentials needed to start a church in the 21st century -oh, and a little left over to provide for Roscoe and his family. Rosoce and I talked about all this as we drove to the river. He went on to tell me that this past Easter there were more people on the stage at the High School where they meet than had been in the entire congregation that first meeting. As he talked I could feel his excitement. I could see he was doing what he felt he should be doing. I could see a little of how hard it had been. I could see he wasn't finished. So, yeah - I went fishing with Paul and I learned just a little about the good times and the bad when we spread the word.