GOOD AND PERFECT GIFTS
I don’t have much time to fish and it’s unbearably hot. As I walk the trail to one of my favorite ponds I can feel the humidity thick in the air. Perspiration starts to form on my forehead and neck even before I step out of the woods onto the pond’s bank. I really love this place! No one ever fishes it but me and it’s full of bluegill, green sunfish and largemouth bass. Sure, it’s covered with mats of vegetation (not too pleasing to the eye), but where the water is fishable the action is lights out!
I quickly rig up my six-weight outfit and begin the task of choosing a fly. With only an hour before the duties of work will demand the rest of my time, I want to pick the best fly possible. This heat also has me wondering. Will the fish hit something on top or would it be better to go sub-surface? I can’t consider these questions too long. I decide to tie on a #12 foam spider, yellow bodied with white legs. As I had hoped, the fish don’t disappoint! Every patch of water I fish I’m met with catches on consecutive casts! All in all I catch 21 bluegills and 2 green sunfish.
In my car back to the “real world” I can’t help but smile. The church I work at is right next to a national wildlife refuge covered in ponds. How lucky can you get? I’m new to fly fishing, but passionate. If I’m not fishing I’m tinkering with my gear, looking over new patterns or reading articles to improve my skills. My wife is already tired of all the fly fishing shows on our DVR, but they’re a lot better than other things I could be watching, right? I guess you could say I’m obsessed, but is it okay for me to be this way? I’m a preacher who on a weekly basis instructs others on things of eternal value. Does my love of fly fishing conflict with my commitment to God? The Israelites of the Old Testament made the mistake of worshipping an idol in the form of a calf. Does my idol take on the appearance of a six-weight with a 7 ½ foot tapered leader?
The more I think of it, my worries are rather silly. The New Testament book of James says that every good and perfect gift comes from above. The way I see it, eternal salvation and fly fishing make the cut when it comes to good and perfect gifts! Fly fishing for me is release, reconnection and reflection all rolled up in one activity. The few hours I spend fishing each month (this due to other good and perfect gifts like work and family) are moments when worries dissipate. I remember I am created to love God and enjoy him forever with each cast made and every fish caught. The time outside somehow brings stability to other parts of life even though there’s no obvious connection between them and fly fishing. Maybe the activities of living, both spiritual and physical, are more interconnected than I thought.
This is where I stand: I love God and I love fly fishing. Neither statement is mutually exclusive. God’s good and perfect gifts shouldn’t be debated about, but participated in. On that note, I think I’ll start planning my next conquest of the local bluegills!
ND Alexander