May 27, 2002
Statewide network aims to reel in men for Jesus
___By George Henson
___Staff Writer
___ONALASKA--Larry Shine has a word of advice for pastors with bass boats: "Name your boat 'Visitation.' That way when somebody calls the office the secretary can say, 'He's out on 'Visitation.'"
___While that's only a joke, Shine is serious in his belief that bass boats can be tools for evangelism.
Larry Shine uses bass fishing to lead men to faith in Jesus.
___He is state chaplain of Fishers of Men Ministries, an organization that now includes 22 states and has three Texas divisions. Texas divisions include East Texas, Northeast Texas and the Metroplex.
___"Hundreds of bass fishermen who would never darken a church's door have come to know Jesus because of this innovative outreach ministry," Shine said.
___The ministry's five divisional tournaments are held on Saturdays but not Sundays, when most other bass-fishing tournaments are held. An even bigger difference is that Fishers of Men tournaments include a Friday night worship service and meal. More than 350 men professed faith in Jesus Christ on the national level last year through the ministry, with Texas landing the biggest catch.
___"Since coming to Texas last year, almost 50 bass fishermen have been saved, and there have been three times that number of rededications," Shine said.
___Some of the Friday night worship services are held in churches, but if a sponsoring church is not near the lake, a marina is sometimes used. God uses that, too, Shine said. "There are some fishermen who will come and listen outside a marina but who won't come to a church."
___The appeal to non-Christian anglers is that the tournaments use standard bass tournament rules and are run as professionally as possible, Shine said. Regional and national championships are also a part of the tournament trail. The organization produces a nationally circulated magazine called Hawg Heaven.
___Fishers of Men leaders know the right way to land a fisherman's interest, Shine said. "We talk to them in a language they understand."
___For example, before a recent tournament, Shine preached using visual aids out of his tackle box. He told the anglers that just as they use a variety of lures and techniques to catch fish, so Satan throws out just the right lure to entice humans to sin.
___Men who make spiritual decisions at the tournaments are referred to local churches for discipleship.
___The ministry is effective because non-Christian fishermen can see that believers are "ordinary guys," Shine said. "I don't fish in a coat and tie, so I am a little more approachable to a lot of guys. And one of the good things about evangelizing the person in your boat is you know they are not going anywhere."
___While acknowledging that many non-Christians show up for the first tournament or two with a bit of apprehension, he finds that dissipates rapidly once they get to know some of the other men. "We want them to know you can be saved and still enjoy your life," Shine said.
___Membership in the organization is made up primarily of Christian pastors and laymen who like to fish competitively, but who make being in church on Sundays a higher priority. Many use the organization to expose non-Christian angling friends to the gospel.
___That is a large part of the appeal for Shine, who is pastor of Pine Forest Baptist Church in Onalaska, 30 miles east of Huntsville on Lake Livingston.
___His congregation supports his work with Fishers of Men because they see it as another way to spread the gospel.
___"Anything to evangelize--that seems to be the backbone of this congregation," he said.
___Shine and Duck Wright, a layman from Jasper and director of both the East Texas and Metroplex divisions, recently took a boat and to the Royal Ambassador Congress in Tyler and talked with boys and men about fishing and Jesus. One boy professed faith in Christ that day as his father looked on.
___For more information, go to www.fishersofmenministries.com, or call Wright at (936) 897-9951.
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