Letting Fishermen Fish

"‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will make you fishers of men.’ At once they left their nets and followed Him." Mark 1:17-18 NIV.

Most of the family-owned fishing boats lay splintered in the aftermath of the Asian tsunami that hit Southern Thailand. These boats were handed down from generation to generation. Replacing the destroyed boats after the wave was not possible for these poor fishing families unless someone stepped in to help. Without the boats these families have few prospects for earning a living. Through the generosity of Southern Baptists, 40 families are getting the opportunity to rebuild their fishing boats.

"We are not giving a hand out," said Maria*, one of Pacific Rim’s ISC personnel working with tsunami relief in Thailand. "Each family that receives a boat is supposed to work on building all the boats. We are providing the materials and the expertise of a boat builder to supervise the fishermen. We are giving a hand up, not a hand out."

It takes two weeks to build a boat. The materials cost between $3,000 to $5,000 US, which includes the motor and all the fishing supplies to launch a working fishing boat. Three sizes of boats are being built to replace the size of boat that each family lost in the tsunami.

As the boats are completed a lottery determines the order in which the families receive the boats. Each boat is given a registry number that is titled to the family to promote honesty and to minimize the potential that the families will immediately sell the boats. All of these suggestions came from the Thai families involved.

Since this is long-term project, Southern Baptists are forming deep relationships with these families. Our prayer is that the Lord will draw the net to lead many of these families to salvation, and that they in turn will become His fishers of men in the greater community.

*Name changed for security reasons.