Why I refuse to have Black friends!

I am white.
I am southern.
I am conservative.
I am Christian.
I live in South Carolina.
My great great grandad served in the Civil war for the Confederacy.

I stand before you today saying that I am proud that I do not have any black friends. I'm also so proud that I don't have any white friends. Oh sure I have friends. I have a friend named Robert who is black, but he's not my black friend. I have a friend named Trent who is Irish American, but he's not my Irish buddy. My friend Michelle is a full blooded Cherokee, but he's not my Native American friend. My friend Desi is Caucasian as they come, but he is not my white friend. My neighbors are from Colombia, but they are not my South American friends.

No, they are ALL just my friends.

Not my black, white, red, yellow or any other colored friends.......just MY friends.  Despite the slant this whacked out PC world tries to SPIN it. I am from South Carolina and I ONLY HAVE FRIENDS.


I wouldn't want it any other way.



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Truths for your Church I learned from over 850 Wild game Banquets.

I started speaking at Men's events and Wild game Banquets back in the 1990's and since that time I have had the privilege of speaking at over 850 events all over the country. Here are a few truths I learned during that time.

1) The Best Game Banquets are done on Weeknights not weekends. -  The reason for this is simple. Guys who hunt and fish do so on the weekends. Show me a Wild game Banquet that is on the weekend, and I will show  you one that is primarily filled with Church goers. An event planned on a week day breaks up the work week for a guy, while still allowing him to talk about hunting and fishing. Choose your times wisely.

2) The Venue makes a difference.- Churches that do their Banquets away from the Church building find they have much better success, because guys who don't know Christ have a thing about walking in a church. Ive heard Church members say: "Well they should want to come to the House of God" Well two things: the building is NOT the house of God. God dwells in people not buildings. (Acts 17:34) Secondly if they wanted to come to your church they would be there. Choose a venue that is non threatening to the non church goer. Give them the chance to hear the good news.

3) "Ambush Evangelism" will hurt your Banquet in the future-  Ive heard Jason Cruise who is in my opinion the leading authority on reaching men through hunting and fishing. Talk about this in his blog: http://jasoncruise.com, and I have seen it as well. A speaker will get everyone to bow their head and close their eyes with the promise of not embarrassing  anyone. However the moment a hand is raised he will tell them to look up and move to a counseling room or to talk with a counselor. This destroys credibility for future Banquets as an outreach event. I had a seminary professor that said a speaker should spend as much time preparing their invitation as their message. Don't bait and switch. Make sure your speaker knows how to extend an invitation and let God work.

4) Churches that use a response card do a much better job of "Follow up" than those that don't.
Following up on decisions made at a Wild game Banquet or any Evangelistic event is critical. Too many churches put more energy and planning in the physical food than the spiritual food. A response card used at the end of a decision time can give the church the valuable and confidential information they need to help a new convert grow and stick. Sometimes a follow up can help deepen up some commitments that a person may not have fully understood. I suggest using your response card at the end for your door prize card. Just make sure that everyone fills one out, and that decision is kept private.

Wild Game Banquets can be an amazing outreach tool, that will draw people that would not otherwise darken the doors of  your Church if they are done with prayer, care and a little thought.

Things Ive learned from BASS Pros about preparing for Bow Season!

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Over the window in my office hangs the Wells coat of arms. Underneath it reads one of the few Latin phrases that I know by heart. Semper Paratus which translates loosely "Always Prepared".  Now I am sitting here in the middle of July with the temperature hovering around 94 with 80% humidity, and suddenly it dawns on me that bow season in my state only about 3 weeks away! I can't tell you how many times I have let the season slip up on me, and I find myself totally unprepared. So what do I do? I look to some over looked experts for help.  You see one of the coolest secrets that I have learned while traveling with the BASS Elite Series Anglers is that some of the best Bass Fishermen in the world are also some of the best Bow Hunters as well. I have had the privilege of getting to hunt with as well as pick the brains of some of the best Bow hunters on the tour. Here are a few things I picked up from some really neat BASS Pros that just may help you get ready for bow season just in time!

1) Get your legs in shape. That's right your legs! Bow hunting can be one physically demanding sport. From the walk to your spot, to the climbing of the tree, without proper physical conditioning you can set yourself up for failure.  Clifford Pirch is a BASS Pro that hails from Payson Arizona, but when hunting season rolls around he is an Elk guide. In case  you don't know it, Elk hunting is a synonym for  "Hiking". Payson has some of the largest Public hunting areas in the country and they are loaded with Elk, and if you want to get them you have to walk them down! Cliff Pirch is a walking machine. Ive learned from Cliff that not only do the "legs feed the wolf", they also make bow hunters better.

2) Practice holding at full draw.  Over the last ten years or so I have had the privilege to get to hunt with Shaw Grigsby on several occasions. Shaw has one of the most successful fishing shows of all time in "One More Cast", but what everyone doesn't know is that he is literally a bow hunting guru who has executed shots in excess of 60 yards! One of the best things I learned from Shaw is to watch tv while holding your bow at full draw. Being able to develop the muscles that allow you to hold your draw longer will put you in a position to make stealthier and more ethical kill shots. I spend a lot of nights holding that string back while watching my favorite shows aka The Bassmasters, and Major League fishing.

3) Have the correct tools to set your stands correctly. Several years ago I got to go on a Mission trip to Joplin Missouri with BASS Pro Brent Chapman. We went in just days after the devastating tornados literally destroyed the city. Brent brought a team of workers and was a powerhouse with a chain saw. He had various types of extensions to reach most every situation we met. I asked him why he had so those and his answer was "tree stand placement". You don't have to have top of the line equipment, but having the correct tools to be able to clear, conceal, and hang your stands can be the difference in filling a tag or not.

Getting Prepared is critical. Whether in fishing, hunting, or your spiritual life, being prepared is the key!

*Follow @Basschaplain on Twitter

My insights on blogging and 40,000 views!

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I have been blogging on and off since 2011, and the Bass chaplain blog just hit 40,000 views!  On that note I would like to share a few insights on my blogging adventure, and also give a shootout to some upcoming things we will be doing!

1) Blogging is a powerful medium- I have written some so so blog posts and a couple that were read by over 18,000 people, and I have discovered that this form of communicating and sharing can be an extremely effective tool to reach and engage an audience.

2) With good blogging comes great responsibility-  Blogging can evoke tremendously passionate responses. I have had people unfriend me, curse me out, and I have been threatened. I have also been told that some of my blog posts have changed people's lives for the better. I have found that carefully posted excerpts from my blog can be powerful starting points for meaningful dialog. That is a responsibility I don't take for granted.

3) Blogging is about timing and consistency- Blogging forces me to be more aware of what is going on in our world. Carefully timed blogs can skyrocket your influence. At the same time haphazard and periodic blogging can really hurt. Too often I get on blog streaks, and then go months without posting. Blogging must be consistent to be effective.


**The next several weeks are going to see a huge shift in our Social Media presence. @Basschaplain has added over 1500 new twitter followers in the last 3 weeks and my goal is to have over 20,000 by the end of the year.

 In addition we will be adding a new Bass fishing/Hunting website to provide challenging and effective informational content to our audience. We are also excited to announce that we are wrapping a new truck for Wellspoken Ministries. The goal is to take that vehicle to every event I speak at (68-79 events yearly) with a wrap designed to start faith conversations. A new website is in the mix as well that will include video and information on how to book the Bass Chaplain.

Fishing til He comes,

Chris Wells -The Bass Chaplain

Starting Faith Conversations!

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According to recent statistics, 90% of Christians in the denomination that I am a member of will never share their faith one time. It always stuns me to think how as  Christians we have the greatest news of any generation to share, and most of us will never share it. I speak to Men's groups all over the country and I have observed that men can share with each other about Football, basketball, fishing Hunting Finances, business and a plethora of other things with absolute ease. Yet when it comes to sharing our faith, men become deaf mutes. Now I don't propose to have the answer to every Christian man who doesn't share his faith, but I do think that more often that not it comes down to "how to start".  I have found that if men can  just get the ball rolling, sharing about our faith becomes much easier. I want to offer some ways to help you kick those faith conversations off.

1) Remember you aren't called to save anyone. As a matter of fact, you can't even save  yourself. God does the saving. We are called however to share. You are successful every time you share your faith, not just when someone is converted.

2) Look for ways for them a start the conversation for you. Right now I am on my way back from a trip to California, where I have gotten to share my faith nearly 40 times. We drove two wrapped boats across country, and let me tell you a wrapped boat is a faith sharing magnet. I had people from all over the country walk right up to me and ask me about the truck and boats, giving me a perfect in to share Jesus. Now I know everyone doesn't have a wrapped vehicle, but there are other ways to get people to ask. Wearing a Christian T-shirt, carrying a Bible, reading a Christian book, or listening to Christian music can all be great ways to start faith conversations. When I am around fishermen I carry a little key chain of a lure made by Rainbow baits. The colors of the bait tell the plan of salvation. Get creative to help those conversations going.

3) Develop telling your personal conversion story. Sharing with people how you met Christ can be one of the most powerful ways that you can share. People will often argue about the Bible, theology, and religion, but no one can argue about what happened to  you. Its a great way to share, however when you do get your story down to around a minute. Yeah that's right I said a minute. When I share my story I use the "Before, How, Now" Method. What was my life like before I met Christ? How did I meet Him? What is He doing in my life right now? This is great way for you to begin to share Christ.

The more  you share your faith the easier it gets to learn how to share, and when you start, God will use   you. There is nothing more exciting than being used of God to change lives.

That's a Wrap!

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Today I am writing this entry for two reasons. First to share the faith stories of my "Wrapped Truck". Second because its time to "Re-Wrap" and we are looking for partners. Now for those of you who are unfamiliar with Wrapped vehicles, I will give you a crash course on their purpose and effectiveness. Basically a wrapped vehicle is when a company puts a vinyl covering over a vehicle in order to draw attention and to advertise. For years people have purchased advertising on Bill boards and in Yellow pages, but imagine if that Billboard could actually go where your customers are? Enter the wrapped vehicle. Marketing experts tell us that a wrapped vehicle generates over 40,000 impressions for every 6 hours it is on the road. In addition to that, a wrapped vehicle lasts much longer than a Billboard. In the BASS fishing world where I minister, wrapped vehicles and boats are the standard by which most companies advertise. So what does this have to do with Ministry? Ill tell you.

I have found that one of the reasons that most people don't share their faith, is because they don't know how to start. My wrapped truck gives me a perfect opportunity to start. In the years that I have had my truck wrapped, I have shared my faith hundreds of times and have seen many people trust Christ. In addition it allows me to share with people what I do, and gives me scores of opportunities to minister to people who are hurting. I will share with  you a couple of stories.

 Several years ago former BASS classic winner Randy Howell, shared with a company that wraps trucks about my ministry. They called and offered to wrap my truck as a gift to Wellspoken Ministries. I picked up the new wrap in Birmingham Alabama, and set out to drive to the Classic which was in Shreveport Louisiana that year. 15 minutes after I got on the highway I got a phone call. The caller said "I just passed you on the interstate, and I saw that you are a Christian speaker. How do I become a christian?" I had the opportunity to lead him to Christ over the phone. One summer, our family was staying down at the beach. As we were cleaning up to leave, we realized we were out of glass cleaner. I was given the task to go fetch some. I pulled into the parking lot at CVS and saw a man staring at my truck. He walked directly to me and said " Do you pray for people"? He was going through a divorce and took a walk to try and figure out his life. I had the opportunity to lead him to Christ in the parking lot.

I have so many testimonies just like those, of scores of people that walk right up to that vehicle. Now do you have to have a wrapped truck to share Christ? Absolutely not, God can use whatever we give Him as long as we are willing to be used.  So with that said, we are looking for Sponsors for the new Basschaplain Wrap. If your business of company is interested they can contact us through email or by phone. We have a number of sponsorship levels. Take Care and Keep telling people about Jesus!


To contact us about wrap Sponsorships:

(864) 414-9453
Chris@chriswells.org

Twas The Night Before the Classic(Hartwell version)

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Twas the night before the Classic and all around the show, everyone is fretting will their be any more snow!  The Jigging spoons were hung on the rods with care, and everyone's decked out in Cabela's Guidewear.

The Anglers were snug looking down at their boats, where Skeeters and Tritons will soon be afloat.  Mark Zona and Sanders  have their headsets on, and Camera's will be ready to film before dawn.

When down at the boat ramp their arose such a clatter, People from Anderson ran to see what was the matter. I ran down Green pond in hope that I could see, a glimpse of Randy Howell and Andy Montgomery!

The  moon was gleaming on the ice down below, I wished I was a Marshall, riding with Defoe! When what to my longing eyes should appear,  but Jerry McKinnis and Trip Weldon calling is everyone here!


There was a little boat driver as bright as can be, and I knew he was running Blue Water LED! 
More rapid than eagles the Fishermen came, as the cold water churned as they called out their names.

Go Browning, Go Ashley, Go Evers, and Go Pace! Now Davis, and Faircloth their off to the race!
From the top of the ramp, to the mouth of the Bay, the Classic competitors are all on their way!

The Bass Chaplain is headed down to the ramp. Come Sunday we will know who is the Bassmasters Champ!!

By Chris Wells and Bob Eads

50 Shades of Grey and other irrelevant rabbits Christianity Chases

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I can scarcely watch the tv, turn on the radio, or open my social media without hearing the latest controversy that I should be protesting as a Christian. The lists of wrongs that mainstream Christianity are calling for me to be against are staggering, and with each comes a passionate litigator emblazoned with fire for his cause. 50 Shades of Grey, The Davinci  code,  Stigmata, The last temptation of Christ, the search for heretics, the cleansing of liberalism, translation arguments, theological disputes, and the lists go on and on.

As I sit here at my desk and think of all the causes that Christians get fired up about it reminds me of my 8th grade Algebra class. Back in the 1980's I felt about Algebra much like I do today. I hate it. In 8th grade I hated doing it so badly that a few of my classmates and I devised a strategy to keep from doing as much of it as we could. You see I had an Algebra teacher that was literally a Korean war hero. He had served with distinction in the army and with a little bit of encouragement we could get him to tell war stories during Algebra. What 8th grade boy wouldn't want to hear about grenades exploding nearby as opposed to solving for x?  My point is we caused a distraction. By getting him to chase rabbits we got out of a lot of Algebra. Christianity today spends a lot of time trying to root out what they consider evil. Now I want to say that I am not endorsing 50 Shades of Grey or any movie, book, or philosophy that contradicts the Word of God, but I am saying that too many times the tangents are the focus.

In Matthew's gospel there is a parable Jesus tells that has come to be known as the wheat and the tares. In the story a man sows a field of wheat,  but when the wheat comes in, he and his servant notice that there are tares that have been mixed in with them. The servant expresses his concern over the problem. The conversation goes like this:

 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?

He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?

But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

—Matthew 13:24-30, Holy Bible: King James Version

The servant wants to run in and pluck the tares out, but the Sower says. No don't do that. We will go about our mission, and when the time comes it will be sorted out. Often times running in a situation in protest and the desire to stop or destroy the evil does more harm than it does good. I imagine a lot more people will go to see 50 Shades as a result of Christians screaming in protest than if we really just lived and spoke in manner of going about our mission. Here are a few things I wish we Christians would burn into our brains.

1) What We do speaks Louder than what we say EVERY SINGLE TIME.  The book of James cuts to the chase when it asserts that if we truly know Christ, it will show by our lives. It will be so evident that  often times there will be no need for words, but when there are, we will be much more credible.

2) Lost people will ALWAYS act lost. It shocks me that Christians are shocked when a lost world acts lost. It is the nature of man to do the wrong thing every time. Don't expect the world to produce content for your entertainment that reflects the standards of Christ. They are incapable of doing so.

3) The Church needs to focus on being a beacon of light, not an amber alert of the dark. Light doesn't have to seek out darkness. LIGHT OBLITERATES IT!  Darkness cannot stand in the light. We are called to Salt and Light to a dying world. They should see our lives and be blinded by the light, and thirst for what we have.


When the tendency to chase those rabbits happens, let's focus on "letting your light shine before men so they will see our good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven".




@Basschaplain invites you to follow him on twitter.

BASS Chaplain Videos

Im often asked about putting up videos of my speaking. Here are a few. If you would like to have Chris Wells aka (The Bass Chaplain) at your next Ministry event. Go to: www.chriswells.org

How is the State of your Union? (And will you address it?)

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"praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every

spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. … "

The State of the Union is the address presented by the President of the United States to a Joint session of Congress and, typically delivered annually. As I listened to our President give this address   last night it occurred to me that all Christians could learn a lesson from this tradition by taking the time to truly evaluate the State of our Union with Christ. Unfortunately just as many Presidents do, we often tend to overestimate how well we are doing, and we don't paint an accurate portrait of what is really going on. Here are a few questions  to help us accurately  gauge how we are doing.

1) Is there evidence of Conversion in my life?- The Bible says that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. There are many who name Christ as savior, but never have evidence that He has actually saved them. If you are truly in Christ it will be evident in the fruit that your life produces. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self control. When  you examine your life, are these apparent?

2) Do you have an actively consistent time with God? - In the book of Mark it says that very early in the morning, Jesus went to a solitary place where he prayed. There should be nothing that is more important or precious to the believer than spending time with God. As a matter of fact if we are too busy to spend time with God, then we are busier than God created us to be! Do you spend time with God?

3) Do  you have a Biblical spiritually defined purpose?- When God saves us, He also gives us spiritual gifts. The gifts are given to enable us to accomplish God's desired purpose for our lives. However most people have no clue what the spiritual gifts are, much less what their specific gift is. Do you know what your spiritual gifts are? Are you using them for His glory?

4) Do you actively look for opportunities to share your faith?- I honestly believe this is vital in our evaluation of our Union with Christ. The apostles devoted their lives to sharing about Christ. The very last words of Jesus in Acts were "You will be my witnesses".  Statistics tell us that most "Christians" will never share their faith with even one person. We will scream for our Football  team, declare our political allegiance, and rail against injustices, yet we can't share about the one who saved us from death and Hell? Do you share your faith?

This is not an exhaustive list, but its is a great start. So while you are mulling over the Presidents State of the Union Address, why not Address what state your "Union" is in.

Forever Fishing,
Chris Wells

My Take on Perry Noble and NewSpring Church (2.0)

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I want to thank the now nearly 15,000 of you that read my last blog posts on My take on Perry Noble and  NewSpring Church. The response has been overwhelming with comments of your various opinions and ideas on my thoughts. I appreciate you taking the time to read this, and I want to invite you to be a regular reader of this Blog.

I also want to let you know that not every one of my posts will be a commentary on NewSpring Church, however I did feel led to write this follow up.  The vast majority of comments to my first post were positive, but there were some negative as well.  I respect the right of everyone to have their own opinion. Whenever I formulate an opinion, I always like to get my information from the direct source. If you choose to read the things I have written you will find that I am like that with my writing and my Bible reading. Often times it has been my experience that people hear and read what they want to, and many times critical context is ignored. I want to also reiterate that I have no dog in the NewSpring "fight, I am by all accounts as I said an outside observer.

Now with that said, if you will recall in my last post I concluded by saying that "I have no problem disagreeing or  even opposing someone on hard fact theological errors".  It is very spiritually ironic to me that shortly before I posted my blog that Perry Noble preached a message on Christmas eve that at least part of which I do disagree with. Before I share those with you, I know that some people are getting their critical information from an article written in which claims that Perry Rescinded the 10 commandments. I intentionally have delayed my response to this so I could watch the Dec 24th message and his Jan 4 message in order to hear the context (I suggest you do the same).

In Perry's December 24th message there were in my opinion 3 points of contention, that I will address.

The first of which were Perry's comment on there being no Hebrew word for "Command". He stated that the 10 commandments could better be called the 10 promises. My response to this is No and yes. There is actually a word for commandment in Hebrew, but at the same time the 10 commandments are often referred to in Hebrew at the 10 Sayings, the 10 words, as well as the 10 matters. He used them as the 10 promises. In my opinion he could have worded this better. I also believe the 10 commandments are commands  because the law drives us to the savior. A wise man once said " the Commandments are like a mirror that shows us the stubble on our face. We don't take the mirror down and shave with it, rather it drives us to pick the razor"  The commandments show my need for a savior.

Secondly during the course of the message he (according to his own words) used the N word inadvertently. I had to listen to it 3 times to hear it.  I honestly don't believe he meant to say that, and he apologized for it in his address on Jan. 4. I know that in the course of my speaking, I have gotten jumbled and said words that I didn't mean to say.

Thirdly, people have said that he rescinded or rewrote the commandments. I don't think that is what he did at all. What I saw in the video was Perry quoting the commandment and then saying it in his own words. There were some of his points I thought he did a great job on an others I think he did not do so great on. I think he could have re framed that message better, and I attribute that to his (by his own admittance) lack of preparation.

With all of that said, what concerns me most is the exuberance of some in the christian community who seem over zealous to see this man and this church fall. Do I agree with everything that Perry Noble says? Absolutely not, and I'll let you in on a big secret. There are very (few if any) pastors and theologians that I agree with 100% of the time. Let me give you some examples. 

-TD Jakes and I would disagree  on the Trinity and how one receives the Holy Spirit. Does that mean that I think he is not a man of God? Absolutely not!
- The Duck Dynasty crew and I disagree on baptism. They believe baptism is essential for salvation. I believe baptism is a step of obedience. Do I think they are lost for saying that. I do not.
- John Piper doesn't believe that Jesus came to die for everyone. I believe that He came to die for every single person on the planet. Does that mean he is not a man of God. I don't think so.
-Perry Noble messes up in a single message by saying a word he shouldn't and frames his message in a manner that was hurried and hurt the meaning. Does that make him a heretic? I think not.

It stuns me  how the positives of that message have been totally ignored. I can say this with all integrity of heart. There are very precious few people that I have seen, that care more about people coming to Jesus than Perry Noble. It is evident in his demeanor that he passionately and sincerely desires people to trust Christ. I watched that invitation he gave that night. I did not see manipulation, but rather passionate concern for the lost to be saved. It is my understanding that over 200 indicated they trusted Christ that night.

I pray in my own life that God would fan such a desire in me to care about where people spend eternity. There seems to be such an arrogance and meanness in our dealings with one another. Jesus said "they will know we are Christians by our love for one another". Sometimes I wonder if they do? There seems to be an ominous recruitment to get people into one theological camp or the other. As for me, I have decided to take the advice of one of my Mentors. He said: "Chris in church life, people will ask you what camp you are in. Always remember, Jesus called you to go Fishing, not camping".

Forever Fishing,

Chris Wells