Swimming in the Nile

The Nile river holds the title of the longest river in the world. It starts in Lake Victoria down in Uganda and flows northward to Egypt until it releases into the Mediterranean Sea. By the time the Nile gets to Egypt, it’s pretty nasty and dirty. The expats there often warn of the dangers of touching the water because of amoebas. After a year of hearing all the warnings, I decided that I couldn’t live the rest of my life telling people I never swam in the Nile. So two friends and I rented a felucca (sail boat) and told the hired captain to take us to the middle where the water flow was the fastest.

After arriving in the middle we laughed at the thought of what we were about to do. “You go first,” one of us shouted. “No. You go first.” Somehow it was decided that I would go first while one of the others filmed our journey into the depths of the Nile. Sitting on the edge of the boat, looking into the Nile, I couldn’t stop laughing at the absurdity of what I was about to do. I finally slid off the side of the boat into the murky water. It was cold and dirt. After the other two joined me in the water, we quickly got out, toweled dry and had the captain take us back to shore so we could run to our homes and shower.

As Christians, many of us try to get through this world without getting in the water and we do our best to keep from getting splashed on. The fear of that paralyzes a lot of people and even pushes them to the center of the boat away from the edges. The problem is that if we are to bring people into the boat, we have to be where we can get splashed on. We sometimes have to get out of the boat and down into the water where people are in order to bring them back.

Jesus had no problem doing this. He often went into the homes of known sinners. He was even splashed on by the tears of a prostitute. The religious leaders around him said, “If you were really a prophet, you’d know what kind of woman that is who is touching you.” Jesus knew exactly who she was and what she had done yet He still allowed her to wash His feet with her tears. He forgave her sins and told her to go in peace.

If we aren’t willing to get out of the boat and to get dirty we will never reach others for Christ. Our lives weren’t meant to be lived completely encapsulated by the boat away from the water. Yes it’s dirty. Yes it can be dangerous, but I don’t want to get to Heaven one day and have this conversation:
Me: Jesus, I made it.
Jesus: Who did you bring with you?
Me: You know, Lord, that water was murky and nasty. I didn’t want to risk getting dirty by getting in it to help someone else. I figured you wanted me to be nice and clean when I got here.
Jesus: Have you ever met a fisherman who smelled good or had clean hands? Fishing requires you to get in the murky water. It requires you to get your hands dirty. You were called to be a fisher of men.

We are each called to be fishers of men. Any good fisherman will tell you to fish where the fish are. It just makes sense. In Luke 14:21, Jesus said we should go to the streets and the alleys and invite the poor, crippled, the blind and the lame. Then He said to go into the country roads and behind the hedges to urge anyone you find to come so that His house may be full. Where have you been called to go that you’ve been afraid of? Don’t let what others think keep you from getting your hands dirty to reach others. Be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove.