KEYWORDS: love, god, fish, lord, fishing, bait

Feedin' the Fish

David Berg

—MOMay 18, 1975DO NO.543

1. ONE OF THE CARDINAL RULES OF FLIRTY FISHING is just like any kind of fishing: You don't give any more bait than you have to, and if you have to, don't give any more than you want to, because if you have to, the Lord knows it's going to pay off and the Lord will even make you want to!

2. THE BEST THING TO DO IS NOT TO IF YOU CAN HELP IT. Any fisherman in his right mind tries not to give the fish the bait. Any fisherman knows what it means when he comes home from a day of fishing and they ask him how he did and he says, "I've been feeding the fish!"

3. A LOT OF TIMES WE FEEL LIKE THAT AFTER SOME OF THOSE EXPERIENCES. We just came home and were feeding fish, never got a thing out of it. The fish got all the bait and no hook.

4. LIKE ANY OTHER KIND OF WITNESSING‚ as long as you do it in the right spirit and for the Lord, and you did it in love, and you continually witness while you're doing it and tell them‚ "I love you because God loves you, and I'm doing this because I love you because God loves you," it's not wasted.

5. SO IT'S NOT WASHED EVEN THOUGH THEY DON'T RECEIVE THE HOOK, because witnessing is never wasted! You accomplish your purpose just by showing the love of God and witnessing. What they do with it is their responsibility.

6. WHETHER THE FISH BITES AND GETS THE HOOK IS UP TO THEIR DECISION. That's up to them, not you. You just put it there and make it available, and you show it to them, that you love them and God loves them, but you also remind them of the cost.

7. IT COSTS YOU SOMETHING EVEN IF IT DOESN'T COST THEM ANYTHING! There is a hook! They can seize the bait and run off with it, but they're going to be held accountable, they're going to be held responsible because they have been shown love and been witnessed to, and you have delivered your soul and maybe your body, too, and you're free from their blood‚ so God's going to hold them accountable.

8. THEY'RE RESPONSIBLE, ESPECIALLY IF THEY GET THAT STRONG A WITNESS and don't respond to it. They are really going to get it from the Lord if they don't come across and respond and show God the gratitude and the love and give Him the response that they should!

9. IT'S LIKE ANY KIND OF WITNESSING: You give them the facts and the truth and show them love and show them the Lord, then it's off your back. You've done your part. It's on theirs, and if they don't respond‚ that's their fault and could be their funeral, too!

10. WITNESSING IS NEVER UNSUCCESSFUL! Witnessing always pays! Witnessing never fails! Can you give me a good Scripture on it? "Love never fails!" No matter what it looks like, "Love never fails!" You just can't lose love!

11. THAT WOULD BE A GOOD THEME VERSE FOR FLIRTY FISHING: "LOVE NEVER FAILS!" It never fails because whether they reject and don't respond or whatever they do with it, it never fails. You've done your part, God's done His part, and now they are responsible.

12. THEY ARE ALL THE MORE RESPONSIBLE IF YOU REALLY MAKE A SACRIFICE to show them how much God loves them. That's true for almost any kind of flirty fishing situations: "LOVE NEVER FAILS!" We're in a business that cannot fail! Hallelujah! Wanna win with us?