This parable is a vision that Father God gave me when sitting on the banks of the Mekong River in China, and seeking His heart for the unreached people of that area.
There once was a fisherman who went out to sea. He loved catching all kinds of fish and tried to catch as many as he could each day. However, his Father had given him a dream to find a new species of fish that had never been discovered before.
The man fished for weeks, months and years and caught boat-loads of different fish along the way. Each fish he caught brought him great joy and excitement! But he didn’t stop with those; he continued after the dream to find that NEW special species of fish.
People praised him for the many fish he would catch and even tried to encourage him saying, “You’ve done enough. Take a rest now.” They would say, “You’ve caught more fish than anyone we have ever known! You’ve made your Father proud.” But the man KNEW the dream His Father placed within him to find that undiscovered fish, so he didn’t give up. He would sail out to dark, scary, untraveled places of the sea, and at different times of the year and day, searching for that special fish.
One day, he pulled up the net and inside sparkled a beautiful, colorful fish he had never seen before. He excitedly went and looked through fish classifications and found that it had never been discovered! He couldn’t contain his great excitement!
He carried the fish home to his Father, who joyfully declared:
“This kind of fish has never entered the gates of our home before! Well done, my son!”
All of those living in the house danced and rejoiced! They gave it a name and branded it with the Father’s identity.
After the celebration, everyone expected the fisherman to retire or settle, since he had completed his Father’s dream. What they didn’t know was that his Father’s dream had now become his own. He responded:
“How can I settle now that I’ve experienced the deep satisfaction of finding and bringing a new species of fish to my Father and seen His joy? There may be more out there in that big, deep sea. I am not going to stop now. I won’t stop searching till the day I die.”
In the same way, our Father God has given us a dream to find unreached people groups and bring them into His kingdom. It may take weeks, months and years. We will have to go to untraveled, dark and dangerous places. People won’t understand why we don’t give up the search when we’re bringing so many people into the kingdom of God already. They may think we are doing “enough”. Each of those people we bring home to our Father IS exciting! But we desire to bring Him someone from a people group that has never entered the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven before. We can imagine the angels rejoicing,
“THIS people group is new! No one sings in this language around the throne yet! Let’s mark him/her with the Father’s identity! Hallelujah!”
Even after we see a new people group become children of God, how can we stop and retire? The Father’s dream has become our own. There are still too many unreached people hiding in dark places, needing to be brought into the Light of our Father’s House.
How about you? Will you join us in seeing our Father’s dream become true to see every nation, tribe, and tongue found and brought through the gates of heaven?