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

"I love YOUR Church" My take on Perry Noble and NewSpring Church

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I recently read a blog by NewSpring pastor Perry Noble on 10 convictions he has about the Church. Two of the points of his blog caused such a stir in the Christian community that he was led to do a couple of follow up posts on those positions. For years now I have watched the interesting impact that NewSpring has had on churches, ministers , and the culture around my area and beyond. I wanted to blog and comment on some of the things I have seen.

Now with that said, I want to say upfront that I do not have a dog in this fight! I do not attend NewSpring Church , and I am by all accounts an outsider looking in. I have found however that sometimes the perspective of an outsider can be quite helpful and enlightening. I certainly hope that this is the case here.

I remember sitting in a meeting with a group of people about 11 years ago when one of them talked about a new church his daughter was attending. He said "its called Newspring Church, and is primarily attended by college students from the Anderson SC area". One of the others in the room answered with a chuckle and said "well that won't last. Good luck in getting those college students to tithe" Fast forward 11 years and that small Church has an average attendance of over 32,000 weekly and was voted as one of the 10 most influential churches in the world. The impact that NewsSpring Church has had is astounding in my opinion, and is unlike anything I have observed in my lifetime. In 2013 the South Carolina Baptist convention reported NewSpring baptized 6,551 people. If this number doesn't impress you let me put in in perspective. Of the 19,477 people baptized that year, 1 Church accounted for 33% of the total. The next closest Church had 206 baptisms to NewSprings 6,551!

After seeing this information, if you were using the principles of the now old Experiencing God Bible study by Henry Blackaby, certainly you would think that "look what God is doing and join Him" would be the order of the day here. Surprisingly, at least from an outsider looking in, that is not the case. It is quite the opposite as a matter of fact. I hear more criticism concerning NewSpring Church than any other 10 churches combined. If you type in the name Perry Noble on YouTube there are series videos of pastors across the nation from as far as Arizona that bash the ideals, teaching, and principles of Perry Noble. I myself am a speaker and evangelist, and about every where I go I hear people that take the opportunity to complain about NewSpring Church. In the list below I will share some of the things I have seen and heard, and what my experience has been.

1) Perry Noble preaches an easy believe ism and waters down the gospel. I hear this one a lot, so I took the time to listen to some (not all) of his messages. I also went through their statement of beliefs on their website including those on salvation. This is what I heard and read. It starts with Jesus. He loves me and wants to change my life. I have a problem called sin. Sin separates me from God. Jesus came to live a perfect life for me. I need to repent of my sins and turn to Him in faith. Trusting what He did for me on the cross. Then I need to follow Him. Hmmmm I have heard that somewhere before. It was in the Bible. Maybe its because they don't scream it, or they say it with concern, but that sounds pretty good to me.

2) NewSpring Creates Decision makers not converts. In today's Christian culture that seems to be a very dominant issue with today's theologians and ministers. I always wondered who appointed them as value judges on people's conversions? Do I believe that everyone who prays a prayer is converted? Certainly not. However lets look at it this way. Suppose out of the 6,551 people that were baptized at NewSprings that 6,200 were not truly converted. That would mean that only 351 were genuine. That would still be 145 more than the second most baptisms in the state of South Carolina. Wow!

3) NewSpring is just sheep swapping. (They take our church members.) I think this is the criticism that I hear the most about NewSpring. I am not on a church staff presently, but I served on several for over 15 years, and I assure you that church members going to the "Hot" church did not start with NewSpring. Church members have been doing this for many many years, long before NewSpring came around. I looked around their website, and listened to many messages and I have not seen or heard anyone from NewSpring advocate "leave your church and come to ours". Have I been invited to attend NewSpring? Yes I have, and in turn I can say that in my life I have invited many churched and unchurched people to my church. Wouldn't it be cool if we just got excited that at least someone cared enough to invite us TO church?

4) People just come for the show!- This one has always perplexed me. Let me explain. I wonder how many people in the Bible woke up and said "Hey lets go see Jesus and get saved!" I was not there but I bet it was more like. "Hey lets go see this guy who raises people from the dead and ticks the Pharisees off!!" In Jesus' day, He was the show! There was no tv, celebrities, college football, or Duck Dynasty to watch! My point is that even though people may have come to see the show. They ended up following Jesus. Faith comes by hearing, and you can't hear unless you are there.

5) People that go their just get lost in the crowd- (It doesn't lend itself to living out truth.) I am going to answer this one by telling you about some friends of mine who attend NewSpring. Their names are Randy and Carla Morrison. During Perry Nobles overwhelmed series, Randy was challenged by Perry's preaching to put action to his faith (Book of James). He has a care group who helps assimilate new converts into the "following Christ life". One day Randy met "Angel". Angel was a gang banger that had been kicked out of his house by a grand mom who could not handle his drug using lifestyle. While in school one day, another student asked Angel to come to NewSpring with him. He told Angel he would give him a ride not only to youth group, but to school everyday. Angel attend the "Gauntlet" service and gave his life to Christ. Enter Randy and Carla Morrison. When Angel told Randy he wanted to get out of the drug life, Randy began to check into Angel's life. He found out Angel at 17 was living by himself in a motel. He was only supported by the money from his brother (another great story) and the money he could sell from drugs. Randy embarked on finding Angel help. After a month of searching Randy found out there was not help for Angel. God spoke to his heart and said; "you are his help"! Randy and Carla Morrison took Angel into their home to live with them. He is a part of their family now. I don't know about you, but that sure does sound like living out your faith to me!


In conclusion I want to say that I have no problem with disagreeing or even opposing someone on hard fact theological errors and differences. However when the opposition stems from insecurity, jealousy, envy and speculative opinion we can be sure that these things are from the sinful nature. Do I think NewSpring is a perfect Church with a perfect pastor. No I don't. I also don't believe that Church will exist until it is taken up as the Bride of Christ. I'll tell you this. If your Church is about Jesus being the only way to get to God. If your Church brings Him glory. If your Church invites the lost to know Him. If your Church believes the Bible speaks to real life! If your Church brings you into the presence of the living God.

I love Your Church!




**Follow Chris Wells on twitter @Basschaplain