Author: bkonkle

I LOVE to fish!! Man do I love to fish!! Been fishing since I was a small boy and my love for it has grown since then. And I love talking about fishing. Just ask my wife. It is very much a part of my daily routine. But I have to admit that there is one thing I love to talk about more (or at least I should), and that is the old old story about Jesus. Today in church we sang the old song “I Love To Tell The Story” and it made me think that is the story I love to talk about even more. The story of Jesus and his love for us, how he died on a cruel tree, and how he rose from the dead to pay our sin debt. That is the greatest story of all. And it is no “fish” story! It is very real! We need to be “fishers of men” and tell people the wonderful Gospel; that Jesus died for their sins and wants them to live in heaven with him, if they will just believe and accept his free gift of grace and mercy. So let’s be busy and tell people the greatest story of all!!

I have often wondered why sometimes the fishing is just lousy and other days it’s on fire. I have experienced this on large bodies of water (big lakes & big rivers) and even on small lakes & small ponds. On these waters, the fish are spread out over a larger area and they have more places to hold up. And of course, many things affect the fish, for example: the temperature, barometric pressure, moon phases, water conditions, fishing pressure, etc. But when you fish a VERY tiny pond that is LOADED with fish and you don’t catch anything, to me, that seems like a different story entirely. I experienced this last evening. Caught one bluegill on a 3/0 circle hook!! That was not my target species; catfish were on the menu. Not a single channel cat was caught. Many different baits were tried: blood bait, chicken livers, chicken breast, worms and cut-up tilapia. Go figure! It reminds me of the time when Jesus said this to his disciples: “Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes”. (John 21:6) Maybe this is when we are to do as it says in Proverbs 3:5: Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. This is always the best way to go about doing anything!!

Some exciting news!! “Fishing With Oh Dad” YouTube channel is now in Cambodia. The Lord has opened a door in Cambodia through one of my subscribers. I pray that Jesus will continue to keep the door open so that the Gospel can spread. I pray for the opportunity to share more of the love of Christ to this subscriber and that they can spread the word too. Folks, that is what this YouTube Channel and this website are about: reaching the lost with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord for this opportunity!!

Yesterday I helped with a small job for a friend from church. Hot and tiring work, but got it done pretty quick. When I got home, I was thinking of a few things. One, was how refreshing it was to have someone appreciate my work. Two, it felt good to work. And third, it reminded me of the scripture verse in Luke 19:13 where Jesus was telling the parable of the ten servants and He said in the parable “And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.” In these days of tremendous uncertainty and with the Lord’s soon trumpet call to his own in the Rapture, we are STILL to “occupy till he comes”. What does that mean? We, if we are a husband, to love (as Christ loved the Church) and support our wives. If we are fathers, we are to bring up our children in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord”. We are told to WORK with our hands. We are to be good stewards of the gifts God has given us and that includes a body that should be out working (if we do not have a severe health problem) earning a living to support our families and our selves. Finally, we are to be a light to a lost and dying world, bringing people a little closer to Jesus, pointing the way to the Savior, so that He can make you “fishers of men”. Mark 1:17

Well things didn’t go exactly as planned the other day fishing in a canal up near Phoenix. Watch the video here to find out what happened. Had a great day anyway. Always great to be out fishing.

We had an interesting day fishing a canal in the Phoenix area last Thursday. Not what I expected in many ways. We did get to meet one of Arizona’s finest though. Watch the video when it is published next Tuesday at 3PM MST, to find out what happened. Had a great day up there anyway!!

Attention fellow fishermen!!!! We were fishing in Buckeye, Arizona the other day and when we finished, we were in desperate need of sustenance in the form of food. My friend suggested Chick Filet but the inside dining area looked closed and the drive thru line was a mile long! So we decided to try Subway, but their dine-in area was closed also. So, we decided to head down I-10 to see if we could find anything along the freeway. My friend spotted a sign in Tempe for the Black Bear Diner. He said he had eaten at one before and that that they had decent prices and huge portions. Well, with that being said, we high-tailed it over there and a enjoyed a fabulous lunch. Great food, good service, and decent prices. What else could two hungry fisherman ask for!? So, if ya’ll are in Tempe (there are other locations in the Phoenix area and throughout the state) stop in, say howdy, and enjoy a great meal in an out-doorsy atmosphere. This location is 7700 S Priest Drive, Tempe. Tell’m I sent ya!!

I was reflecting on my fishing trip with Derrick yesterday to the canals near Phoenix and was reminded of this thought. When the temps are hovering at 100 degrees and the humidity is sky high and the fishing is bad, people usually comment and say things like: ” You are a fool for sitting out there and roasting.” or “I just don’t understand why you would do something like that.” So I was reminded of a quote from Jim Elliot, one of the martyred missionaries to the jungles of South America. He said: “He is no fool to give what he cannot keep to gain what we cannot lose.” The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 3:18 “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.” and in Philippians 3:7 “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.” If we do things in Jesus name, for the cause of Christ, we can never be a fool, because we can gain what we can never lose. Jesus tells us this in Mark 8:36 “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” With our country in such turmoil, I pray that who ever reads this will have made sure that he is right with Jesus and that your eternal destination is secure in heaven.

On my way home from a successful fishing trip I was greeted with some of God’s great artistry. What a added blessing after the Lord blessed me with a good time fishing. Hope you enjoy.

I want to share a story of my boyhood fishing days with my best friend Mark. I have known Mark since first grade and all we pretty much did was go fishing. We would fish anywhere there was water that we could get to walking or on our bikes. Here is the story, as he wrote it, of that long ago summer day:

“Anyway, I didn’t want to let pass a fishing story you may not remember. The biggest bass I ever caught was fishing with you down at Magnolia Lake. The old quarry with an island in the middle almost across from the the Bristol Twp. Police/Municipal building. Not sure you remember it.

I had bought a minnow net a few weeks before and we were fishing with live ones in a cove on a corner of the lake. I think it was a Saturday afternoon. There was a big, half submerged log lying a few feet from shore and we (probably you) thought it might be good spot to try. After only about 10 or 15 minutes, my bobber started to go out. I wasn’t holding the rod at the time and I scrambled to get it. I had to resist the urge to just yank the line right away. I was not a very patient fisherman, but I waited a little bit before I set the hook. The fish started to run and took the line out in kind of an arc and GOT IT SNAGGED on the log. By the time I got out to the log, stepping into the shallow water, to untangle the line, the fish kept tugging and fighting against the log.

By the time a I freed the line, the fish was spent and it was more a matter of reeling in with only few furtive tugs. I pulled it up out of the water. We measured it and it was about 14 inches. Not really big, but it was fat with a lot of girth to it. We didn’t weigh it. It was a black bass, not sure if it were large mouth or small mouth, but it was the biggest bass I ever caught, even since then. Really it was the log that caught it and tired it out.”

Great memories and great times of a different time and place when, I believe, things were a little more innocent.