Gone Fishing

For in the day of evil He hides me in His booth; in the covering of His tent He hides me; Psalm 27:5

Hides – Have you ever wanted to run and hide? When you were a child, it was a game. Now it’s real. Sometimes the world just comes unleashed, shows up at your door with all its ferocity and wants to literally bury you. That’s when running and hiding seems like a very good idea. But just like those childhood games, someone always finds you. If you’re going to hide, you better pick a place where you either can’t be found or you’re protected from every evil. David knew such a place. So do we. The only problem is how to get there.

Perhaps the Hebrew word safan (to hide or keep secret) contains a visual clue about the path to protection. The phonetic word doesn’t mean much more than its translated equivalent, but the pictograph offers something else. The consonants Tsadik-Pey-Nun provide the picture of a hook (desire or need), a mouth (word or speech) and a fish in a stream (life, activity). In other words, this Hebrew verb is the perfect picture of “gone fishing.” Take the hook. Go to the river. Catch a fish. That’s hiding. Leave the territory of evil intent behind and go where no one knows where you are. Go fishing with God.

I remember driving across eastern Washington State years ago. There’s a very small town there called Farmer. At that time, it had exactly one store. There was a single gas pump in front of the run-down, clap-board grocery-bar. When I arrived, there was a hand-written paper sign on the door. “Gone fishing.” Now, the town of Farmer is in the middle of a desert. As far as I knew, there wasn’t a stream within fifty miles in any direction. But there was the sign. Its message was as clear as the cloudless sky. “I’m not here. I left and you don’t have a clue where I’ve gone.” That was true of the proprietor in Farmer, but when it comes to King David, I do know where he went. He went to God’s stream, threw in his hook and waited to catch a word from the Lord. That’s the lesson of hiding. You go where God is and wait to catch something.

I’ve always had a hard time with fishing. I have no patience for the sport. Not surprisingly, I have a hard time waiting for God too. But if I am going to hide out with Him, I will have to learn to fish. And the most important part of fishing is waiting.

There’s a bit more to this verse. It’s about booths. There’s something quite special about hiding in God’s booth. But today, we have a different life question. How’s your fishing? Are you running to the right stream? Is God on the shore with a pole in hand? Are you waiting to catch His word? “Gone fishing,” is unconditional. It doesn’t say when you left or when you’ll be back. It doesn’t say if you’ll catch something or not. It only says you’ve learned to wait.

Topical Index: hide, safan, fishing, Psalm 27:5