March 27 Where Are You Going? Are You There Yet?
Ken Korkow
Posted: Monday, February 6, 2006
You may have heard this story before, but it’s worth repeating because of the perspective it gives:
A boat was docked in a tiny seacoast village. A tourist from another country complimented the fisherman in the boat on the quality of his fish, and asked how long it had taken him to catch them. "Not very long," answered the fisherman. "But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the tourist.
The fisherman explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family. The tourist, a successful businessman, then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life."
The businessman interrupted, "I have an MBA from a very prestigious university’s business school. I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."
“And after that?" asked the fisherman.
“With the extra money the larger boat will generate for you, you will be able to buy a second one, then a third one and so on, until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middleman, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to a big city anywhere in the world! From there you can direct your huge new fishing enterprise."
"How long would that take?" asked the fisherman. "Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the businessman, enthused about his wise counsel.
"And after that?"
"Afterward? Well, my friend, that is when it gets really interesting," answered the businessman-tourist, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!"
"Millions? Really? And after that?" inquired the fisherman
"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."
The moral to this story is: Know where you're going in life – you may already be there!
In the Bible, Jesus expressed this principle in a different way: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-21). A key to a successful, fulfilling life is establishing and maintaining the right priorities.
Ken Korkow lives in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.A., where he serves as an area director for CBMC. This is adapted from the “Fax of Life” column that he writes each week. Used with permission.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
1. What is your reaction to this story about the fisherman and the businessman-tourist?
2. Do you think it is a common problem to become so focused on long-term ambitions that we can easily lose sight of what we already have? Explain your answer.
3. Thousands of years ago the king of Israel, Solomon, who was as renowned for his wisdom as for his wealth, wrote, “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). What steps do you think might be helpful for striking a practical balance between striving for future goals and objectives and yet being able to appreciate and enjoy what we have already attained in the present?
4. The passage quoted at the end of this “Monday Manna” speaks about having an eternal perspective and setting eternal, rather than temporal, priorities? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?
NOTE: If you would like to review some other passages that relate to our this topic, consider the following verses:
Proverbs 18:11, 28:11; Ecclesiastes 1:1-11,2:17-26, 5:10-12