More thoughts on Custom Painted Crankbaits

I have been hanging problems writing blogs lately.  Maybe it’s the fact that I have not been on the water lately.  I have not had that time alone with God in his creation.  I have to say I am feeling it.  I miss my time with God being on the water.

I was reading 2 Corinthians 5 the other day.  It is a great chapter of scripture.  It is in my opinion one of Paul’s greatest writings.  To be honest I have read it over and over trying to understand what Paul is really trying to say.  I would love to read it in Greek so I can see all of the things that don’t translate into English that we miss, but I am not there yet in my Greek understanding. 

What really stuck out to me was 2 Corinthians 5:17, which says: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”  When I read this I immediately thought of a blog I wrote months ago about custom painted crankbaits. 

The point of the blog was that when we become a Christian we are like a crankbait that is custom painted after you buy it.  The paint is stripped and made into a new creation.  We are the same; we are stripped of your old ways and made new when we allow Christ into our lives.

2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us just that, the old is gone!  Just like the old paint on the crankbait is gone our old self is gone.  The “New” is here in the case of a crankbait it’s that new paint job put on by the artist creating it.  In the case of a Christian it’s the new life we gain in the artist of Christ.

 love the analogy of the crankbait receiving a custom paint job and how we as Christians get one as well.  I hope that you have received a custom paint job in your life.  I hope that God has brought the “New” into your life and the old is gone.  If not maybe it’s time that you stop and listen to the words of God and allow the transformation.

No Sleep

It’s funny I wrote a blog a few days ago about being rejected by sponsors.  I was devastated to say the least.  With that said I have been having trouble sleeping the last few weeks and have spent several nights not sleeping or being up very late.  I never went to sleep the other night and spent most of the night on Facebook.

I was reading some stuff about sponsorship and being on pro teams.  I realized why I am worrying about sponsorship.  Yeah it would be nice to have help in the fishing industry and get discounts but I fish because I love it, because when I do I feel close to God.  I watched this funny clip floating around face book about guys being on pro teams and how they get on a pro team and then spend more than they would to be on it.  I’ve found that I only want to partner with companies I use.  I only use Vicious line and will not approach any other line companies.  Just like crankbaits, 95% of the crankbaits I use are Strike Kings and I don’t care to approach other companies because I don’t want to use anything else.

I also have had this need to get a new bass boat (which is always there just more at the moment).  I want to fish BFL’s and don’t know that my trusty old 1979 Ranger bass boat will do the trick.  After talking to a few guys and hearing about other people fishing big tourneys in smaller Jon boats.  I am feeling better about my boat. No, I don’t think I will fish BFL’s in it but with the help of my friend Josh I hope we can fix my boat up a little and make it a little better to fish from this coming season.

Even though I didn’t sleep I learned a lot.  God uses all situations to help us grow.  I truly did grow that night.  I realized that I have a great boat.  Its old, it doesn’t go as fast as the guys I fish with but it gets me fishing.  I have great sponsors like JJ’s Magic, Atomic Tackle Company, BB-Lures, Inside Bass Fishing, GLCC, CenterMark Coaching, Bass Fury and Fish Bait Radio.

My wife was telling me about a conversation she had with a lady she works with that helped me gain a new perspective on my sponsors.  The co-worker said it was impressive that I have lined up the sponsors I have.  In this economy to her that was impressive.  My wife realized that I have done a lot and when I stop and think about what her co-worker said, they are right I have done a lot.  I don’t need to have a big sponsor I have a lot more than most guys.

My Love of Crankbaits

If you have read my blog it is no secret that one of my favorite lures to fish with is a crankbait.  I love how fast you can reel in a crankbait and I love how hard a bass hits the lure.  I have partnered with BB-Lures and Bill (owner) is an artist when it comes to transforming a normal crankbait into a custom painted crankbait which is a work of art.

There is a reason that fishermen spend that extra money to get a crankbait painted into that custom color they want.  The reason is simple, an edge over the competition.  Tournament anglers are always looking for that edge, that new lure or color that will out-fish the other guy.  That’s what a custom painted crankbait does.  I don’t know any anglers that would throw a crankbait that is pink or some color that is natural to fish.  The idea in fishing lures is to match the hatch.  That’s what a custom painted crankbait does; it matches the hatch of the bait fish in the body of water you are fishing.

I was thinking about our lives.  Before I became a Christian, I was that plain crankbait you buy at the tackle shop.  Yes they look good and have a little flash, but they are all plain and pretty much alike (generic).  Yet when we choose to give up our lives and follow Christ we go through a change, much like the crankbait does when it gets a custom paint job.  Just as we are stripped our old ways, the crankbait goes through a similar process when Bill at BB-Lures strips off the old paint.  As we change and live our lives for the Lord we become lights for the Lord.  We change from old to new.  Yes, there is still our old body like the crankbait it is still the same bait but with a new color, a color more alive.  Just like us, when we follow the Lord we become more alive and get a new custom painting from the Lord.

Thanksgiving

With today being Thanksgiving I thought I would talk about things I am thankful for.  I have an incredible wife that I married after only knowing her for two months because I felt God leading me too.  I am blessed to have a wife that at times doesn’t understand my fishing and the things I am doing but stands beside me and supports me.  Plus she reads and edits most of my writings so you don’t read all the typos that spell check misses.  I could not write this blog or my magazine articles without her, so next time you see her tell her thank you.  

If a year ago you would have told me I would be doing the things I am today I would have told you that you were crazy.  In about four months I have gone from no sponsors to seven.  BB-Lures, JJ’s Magic, GLCC, Centermark Coaching, Atomic Tackle Company, Bass Fury, Fish Bait Radio.  I have articles being published in magazines.  I have been contacted from companies like Lazer Trokar to do product reviews.  I have been able to interview Shaw Grigsby.  I am so thankful for the opportunities God has given me and allowed me to do.

One of the things I am grateful for is my boat.  As I write this I realize my wife is going to chuckle when she reads this.  I am always looking at new bass boats and dreaming of a new one.  However I am thankful for my 1979 Ranger.  I am thankful because I can go and fish, I can fish bass tournaments.  At least I have a bass boat.  I am lucky.  

Most of all I am thankful for my relationship with the Lord.  I have lived my life without him, and I know that I never want to go back to that life.  I am blessed to have a savior that loves me and sent his son to die for my sins.  The best part is that everyone can have that relationship with the Lord.  This Thanksgiving I hope we all stop and think about the things we are thankful for.  Have a great Thanksgiving.