Steve Alessi: Author of Alessi’s Angle, Pastor of Metro Life Church in Miami, Husband of World Renown Worship Leader Mary Alessi and Father of Four. 
It was nice getting up when the alarm clock went off at 5:15 AM. Knowing this was going to be a great day on the water, I didn't care that it was still dark outside. Within minutes I was up, dressed and loading the truck with the coolers and fishing rods. I could tell my buddy could hardly wait as well when he sent me a text at 5:55 AM letting me know I was late for our 6:00 AM rendezvous pick up. As I pulled into his driveway, there he was with his own cooler filled with week old sandwiches and cold water, and a fine collection of fishing rods. We both had that goofy, "we're going to have fun today fishing" smile on our faces and as soon as he jumped in the truck he was already talking it up..."Oh yeah, we're going to slaughter them today!"
We had a good laugh about the fishing rods because we had like twenty of them between the two of us, but we didn't care and figured we would need all of them just to haul in the mother load of fish. After we picked up the boat and almost went bankrupt filling it with gas, we were at the boat ramp in no time flat knowing the fish were waiting. Off we went, slapping high fives as we finally were able to do what we've wanted to do all summer and it was the perfect day. Waters were nice, boat's running great, and the croquets were especially tasty on this morning. Once we shot through the channel we were already feeling goose bumps and lots of water as the smooth bay gave way to some pretty choppy seas, but we didn't care and simply powered down to push through it. Before you knew it we were in 400 feet of water and there they were...the birds. OMG! The fish must have missed us!
So as not to disappoint the fish, we immediately threw out the trolling rods and within minutes had the nicest dolphin on the line. After pulling up the other line we had that baby up next to the boat and a huge school of dolphin who seemed to be so happy to see us. Now you need to know something about dolphin fishing. Since they run in schools, the goal is to get one on the line and keep him in the water up next to the boat while throwing other lines out to catch his friends. Sure enough, it was working like a charm. The fish frenzy was in full swing with one on the line and now we're tossing out more lines for the others. Only problem was, every time we would catch another dolphin the line would break. Either the drag was too tight or the line was brittle, either way our fish were not where they should be and that was in the boat. Instead they were swimming around the boat, snatching our lines and breaking them, and seemingly taunting us with a "is that all you've got" flash of their tail. Well, that first catch didn't end well and all we managed to do was get one in the boat. Off we went again and within minutes another hit. Fish frenzy all over again. Oh how we love second chances when it comes to fishing. But again, because we were so excited the first time the fish hit, we didn't pay attention to our rods and the same thing happened. Fish on, but no rods ready for the catch. And it was then that David turned to me and said; "Isn't that just like life? Here God wants to bless us and when He does, we're not ready for it."
The brother couldn't have said it any better, and there we were living it out on the open waters. Finally, we learned our lesson and took the time to prepare our rods for the fish, and after 30 minutes we were in search of more dolphin. But sadly we didn't see another dolphin all afternoon long. Tuna, yes, but no dolphin...which meant we didn't use the ready rods for the rest of the trip. Lesson learned.
Next time you ask God for something, allow your faith to prepare you for it. Because if He brings it to you as an answer to your prayer and you're not ready to receive it, you may miss out on your blessing. And maybe, just maybe, it may never come your way again.
Are you asking God for something? What are you doing to be prepared for when He answers your prayers?
BTW, If you're wanting to enhance your prayer life, then join us on Wednesday nights at Metro Life Church (www.metrolifechurch.com) for our #WWFmlc Study where we're looking at Mark Batterson's book, The Circle Maker.
Fishing! Love it! Miss it! As always great story and great point Pastor. So am I asking God for something? This week I'm not asking for myself just solely for my church. We get caught up in the what we want when there are bigger fish to fry( no pun intended). So, I figure if I pray for my church and ask God for all the things needed for God to make it grow in every area. The preparation? Will be at Circle Maker, Bought my tickets for Worship Encounter, made myself available to serve and open to a new experience and new level.
WOW! What a great reminder to always exercise our faith. Thanks Pastor for sharing this!
I HATE WHEN THAT HAPPENS!!!! - Point well taken Pastor. I like to think I'm "always ready"... but the fact is being "prepared" is a whole different ball game.
BTW - One of the problems is that I was not there to help get prepared for the next hit. You took the old man from Key West; the fish jump into the boat down there :-)