Living the Dream! Some common Myths about Becoming a Bass Pro

2018 will mark my 10th year traveling with the BASS Elite Series as the Chaplain for their Fellowship of Christian Anglers Society. During that time I have seen the highs and lows of a small group of guys who make a living as Rick Clunn put it "Chasing little green fish". For each of those who make that dream a reality, there are literally thousands that fail. People say it all the time. "Those guys are Living the dream"!  Here are some common "Myths" from an outsider looking in about Living the dream of Professional angling.

Myth 1- All it takes is Time on the water.

Of all the myths I will discuss this one has to be the number one false fantasy of those who pursue the dream of Professional Fishing. I hear it all the time. "If I can just spend enough time on the water, I can be as good as those guys. If that were the case, then the oldest anglers  would win every single event.  The fact of the matter is this, fishing is a God given gift, and skill just like any other. I can practice my basketball shooting every day, but I will never shoot as well as Steph Curry. Its the same with fishing. I can certainly improve, but either you have it or you don't.

Myth 2-  If I had all the equipment Sponsors give them, I could compete with the Elite Series and FLW guys.

Most local tackle stores are brimming with guys who brag about how they can beat the Pros,  and blame it on equipment. The truth is that most of the guys on the BASS and FLW tour started with the same equipment you have. The bass boat and type of rod you use does not equate to better tournament performances necessarily. Most Pros were winning long before they received anything from Sponsors.

Myth 3 - Since I beat the guys in my Bass club, I can compete with the Pros.

Winning at the club level may or may not be an indication of your ability to become a bass pro. What many guys fail to see is that traveling around the country and fishing different lakes at different times is a lot different than being the big stick on your home lake for 30 years. Marty Stone says that you need to be cashing a check in at least 80% of the tournaments you fish in, before moving up to the next level. Just because you can win the fruit jar tournament doesn't mean you can beat KVD.

Myth 4- If Sponsors threw money at me like they do those guys, I could fish professionally.

This legendary lie is propagated from boat ramps far and wide throughout our great nation. The reality is that with great Sponsorship comes tremendous responsibility! Sponsors don't just pay to get their patch on a shirt. They pay for the design, testing, promotion, and selling of a product. This responsibility comes with great pressure. I heard on Pro say when" I fished for fun I felt excited when I got a bite. Now I just feel relieved. "

There are some Pros that have there faces on the lures of the Bass Pro shop and Walmart. There are some eating peanut butter trying to win enough money to get home. Mark Davis said "I always laugh when golfers talk about pressure. Pressure is when there is 10 minutes left in the tournament, and you need a 5 pounder just to get home."  Just like anything you do, you better be called to do. If you are not called, then Living this dream can make you hate something you used to love.

Last words

Have you ever thought about doing things for the last time? I do. I think about the day I will catch my last bass, sing my last hymn, hug my children for the last time,  tell my wife I love her for the final time, and preach my last message. I get a strange nostalgic haunting feeling when those thoughts infiltrate my thinking, and often times it spurs me to think deeper. What about my last words? What will they be? Will I have time to say something profound or will it be some random frivolous phrase that emanates out my mouth?

Many times people's last words are recorded, asked about, even sought after. If you do an internet search of Famous last words",  you will get a plethora of the things people have uttered just before their dying moments. Some are absolutely amazing, some not so much, some are crafted, some are funny, some are inspiring, thoughtful, and others scary, and sad. Here are a few examples of what I found:

"Hey fellas. How about this for a headline for tomorrows paper? French Fries!"- Convicted Murderer James French (in the electric chair)

"I only regret that I only have one life to lose for my country."- Nathan Hale- Revolutionary War Spy

"Love one another"- George Harrison - Beatles guitarist

"Nancy, I want you to know my last thoughts are of you" - PT Barnum said to his wife.

" I do not believe in my death"- Salvador Dali

"It is well, I die hard, but I am not afraid to go."- George Washington

"Let us pass over the river, and rest under the shade of the trees." - Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson

"Damn it! Don't you dare ask God to help me!"- Joan Crawford (screamed at her praying housekeeper)

 One day whether we believe it or not, all of us will do everything we do for the last time.  We will all utter the last words we ever will. The Bible tells us that our words are a good indication of what is truly in our hearts. I hope we will all be careful of what we say, for those words could be our last!

Why Matt Lauer's sins are worse than you think.

I awoke this morning to the shocking news that NBC's Today Show had fired its point man. Matt Lauer joined the Today show around 1994, and has become one of the most recognized and popular tv personalities in our country and around the world. Matt was fired due to allegations of Sexual misconduct in the work place. The backlash of this announcement has set off a Firestorm of media frenzy from both the political left and right, due to Lauer's pointed and candid cross examination of several celebrities accused of similar actions.

In a word. It's bad.

However Matt's sins are much worse than you think they are, and heres some more breaking news. So are yours and mine!

The great preacher and theologian Charles Spurgeon said it this way: "If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him, for you are worse than he thinks you to be".

 In our society we tend to to categorize sin. We grade it even. There are big sins like Matt Lauers, but then there are little sins that really don't matter as much. Or so we think. God doesn't see it that way at all. God knows we have a fundamental misunderstanding about the very nature of ourselves, and until we come to grips about who we really are, sin will continue to do its thing. So lets take a quick look.

Sin is anything that displeases God. That's right......anything. It can be things we do, things we say, things we think , things we don't do, things we don't say, AND things we don't think.  The Bible says we are all sinners by our nature, and by our choice, and what we get as payment for sinning is death. There is more bad news here as well. The "death" it speaks of is not just RIP. It's eternal separation from God, and the worse news is it says "there is no one righteous, No NOT ONE.

The answer came in the form of what we will celebrate in less than a month. God saw our condition. Sent His son in the flesh to be born of a virgin, lived a perfect life for us, died a death that we deserved to die, and then comes back to life. So when we turn in repentance towards Him, and  by faith trust what He did for us on the cross, we call out to Him, and everything changes. Our nature is regenerated. Wholly made new. We cross from death to life.

Our sins in life may have different consequences, but they all take us to the same end.  

"If you would like to have more information on starting a relationship with Jesus, please feel free to contact me"-Chris Wells

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