10 Things I learned about evangelism from Shark Week

1. You have to go where they live. Yes, there's the occasional rogue shark, but that's rare. Whether it's catching a shark or evangelism, it's unrealistic to expect them to find you, unless you've gone to where they live.
2. Check your attitude going in. There is a man who has learned to swim with great white sharks unprotected. What he's learned is that the sharks can pick up on his emotions and react differently to him according to his mood. If he wants a nice calm swim, he has to be nice and calm going in. If he's unsettled, so are they. Obviously the sharks aren't picking up on his emotions through his words or body language, they can just pick up on it. If sharks can, don't you think humans can?
   
3. Purify yourself. There's a tribe that's been dubbed the "Shark Tribe" because of their centuries old traditions that have been successful at attracting and catching sharks with their bare hands. There is a purification ritual that they must go through before they can go on a hunt. It's interesting, because this ritual consists of staying away from things that the Bible says is unclean. Do not eat certain foods, do not touch a dead animal, etc. Whether it's the actions themselves or just making what they are preparing to do sacred I don't know. I do think it is wise to take a look at evangelism as something as something sacred that you need to prepare yourself for.
   
4. If you want to attract a lot of them you have to bait the water. If you want to attract them, and you are not attracting them currently, than you have to do something different.
   
5. They are sensitive to movement. The quickest way to attract a shark is by flopping around like an injured fish. Flopping around sends waves immediately. I guess that means to evangelize we have to make our presence known. We can't hide inside the four walls of the church and expect them to come to us. We have to make some waves so they will come and investigate and see what all the noise is about.
   
6. Sharks are attracted by sight. They don't go after everything. If it looks like their prey they go after it, otherwise they don't. You can't attract a shark unless you present yourself as interesting. Evangelism has to be relevant. If you want to reach the lost you have to look like something that interests them.
   
7. They are sensitive to smell. Everyone knows sharks can detect the presence of blood from very far away. When it comes to evangelism, the Bible says they will know you by your fruit. If your fruit is rotten, filled with an agenda, they will be able to detect it. Especially in today's world when we are all hyper sensitive to being sold a bill of goods. People can tell when they are being sold to and when someone really cares. Are you pushing your agenda, do you just not like it when someone is different than you, or do you really care about what's best for them?
   
8. You can't be mad at them for doing what they do. When you are around sharks you can't expect them to act like you. Sharks investigate with their teeth. If you are where the shark lives and have attracted them to you, you can't be upset when they test you to see if you're what you claim to be.
   
9. They are not mindless predators. You can't think that just because you are doing the things that you know they like that you'll have them hooked. Yes, you can do everything right to attract them, but once they bite it's got to be the real thing.
   
10. Word travels fast, and they have a good memory. There are some old shipwrecks that are a magnet to reef sharks. Once a diver injured one of the sharks. Within a day or two all of the sharks were gone and they did not come back for two years! We've got to be careful!