ARE GOOD INTENTIONS GOOD ENOUGH

Being outdoors - whether it’s hiking, fishing, hunting, camping, with family and friends, or alone with God - is my happy place. One of those “with family” times reminds me of when my younger brother and I went walleye fishing.

The location was a lake in northern Minnesota. This particular lake was where my father-in-law taught me how to Linde Rig for walleye many years ago (Linde Rigging is a technique of fishing close to the bottom of the lake). Countless hours (days…the more I think about it) and many weeks have been spent walleye fishing on this lake. In fact, my sons have also learned how to walleye fish on this lake. So, when my younger brother and his family joined us on vacation one year, I was very excited to take him fishing and show him all the great spots. We caught a good amount of walleye over several days of fishing, nothing really big though.

On the morning of my brother's final vacation day with us, I wanted him to catch a big walleye, something to remember for years to come. We went to one of my usual hot spots and picked up a few smaller walleyes. Knowing we were running out of time, we headed to another productive spot. Several more smaller ones were caught as we continued to fish at different depths and speeds.

Then, it finally happened - he hooked a big walleye! The bend in his fishing pole confirmed it was a beauty. I quickly reeled in my line and grabbed the landing net. As my brother battled the lunker closer to the boat, I readied myself to scoop up the beast. The heavy fish was now close enough to see in the water and it was a beauty! My brother lifted his rod bringing the serpent to the surface of the water. I could tell the fish wanted to make a run to the safety of the deep water, so I thrust the net into the water just as the beast made a run for it. I intended on scooping up the fish with the net, not thrusting the net at the fish. Unfortunately, the thrusted net broke the line and the fish made it back to the safety of the deep water. However, my brother didn’t care what my intentions were, only that it could have been the biggest walleye he ever caught. 

James 4:17 So whoever knows the right thing to and fails to do it, for him it is sin.