Fishermen don’t rely on luck in order to catch fish—they put their skills, knowledge, and experience into play every time they cast their line. Likewise, righteous and godly living doesn’t come naturally but requires study, commitment, and a lot of practice. In Catch of the Day , Jimmy Houston combines his love of fishing and his love of God in this unique fisherman’s 365-day devotional. Each day features: A meaningful Scripture - A daily devotional that incorporates a thought for meditation which applies insights from the art of fishing to daily spiritual growth - A fishing tip from bassmaster, Jimmy Houston With colorful interiors and a ribbon marker, Catch of the Day is a great gift for: Birthdays, Father’s Day, and Christmas - Grandparents Day or as an encouragement boost for an outdoors enthusiast needing a lift Put into action the characteristics needed to be a great fisherman, and see how they can also make you into a great fisher of men. Anyone who loves God’s creation, combined with the excitement of the catch, will truly enjoy this yearlong guide of spiritual lessons for life. Jimmy Houston, “America’s Favorite Fisherman,” has been fishing on national television since 1977. His fishing show, Jimmy Houston Outdoors , is one of the most widely viewed outdoors shows on the air and is consistently ranked as the #1 outdoors show on ESPN. A huge crowd favorite at bass tournaments and over 100 personal appearances a year, Jimmy represents most of American’s top outdoors related companies, such as Bass Pro Shops, Garmin, and Tracker Boats. In 2017, Jimmy was presented a Bass Pro Shop Angler of the Century award. Jimmy has written five books, including Hooked for Life , The Reel Line , Catch of the Day , and Caught Me a Big ’Un , which was a #1 selling fishing book. Jimmy has a growing presence on YouTube and Facebook with both his Jimmy Houston Outdoors channel and his Catch of the Day daily devotions channel. He is a deacon at Midway Hill Baptist Church near Sulphur, Oklahoma. Jimmy and his wife of over 57 years live in southern Oklahoma. Catch of the Day By Jimmy Houston Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2012 Jimmy Houston All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4003-1964-0 Chapter One January 1 GENESIS 1:1 In the beginning God created the sky and the earth. It's always exciting to begin something new like a new job, new house, new marriage, or a new family. New projects excite and energize me. I'm always excited about beginning a new tournament season where all the fishermen start out again at zero. I can't wait for the start of Major League Baseball or the first game of Oklahoma University football or basketball. One tradition I started more than thirty-five years ago was to begin each January 1 and read the Bible through in a year. Now, I've completely read the Bible through more than thirty times, in addition to my other Bible reading and study. Start your very own tradition today. Five, ten, twenty years from now, you'll be amazed at what God wants to tell you on a daily basis. TIP Use the cold winter months to clean and organize all your tackle to get ready for that great spring fishin'. January 2 GENESIS 1:27 So God created human beings in his image. God could have made us look like anything He wanted. We could have looked like the space aliens we see on Star Trek or Men in Black . We could have looked like frogs, or fish, or anything else God chose. But He chose to pattern us after Himself. We are patterned after God—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We are not God, we are not perfect, but we are patterned to be that way. The next time you have a pity party about how you look or feel, think about what God could have made you look like and how He could have made you feel. Then look in that mirror and smile. Look inside yourself and laugh; God patterned you and me after Himself! TIP Spool on new line at the start of every year and every four to six weeks during fishin' season. January 3 PROVERBS 10:2 Riches gotten by doing wrong have no value, but right living will save you from death. Fishing tournaments have brought out the very best and very worst in fishermen. While tournaments are incredibly fair and honest, cheating does creep in sometimes. Blatant cheating is usually discovered quickly, and cheaters are disqualified, generally banned for life. Unintentional rule breaking is punished by penalties, such as a weight penalty or loss of your catch for that day. The most damaging cheaters are the ones who bend the rules for their own benefit and ill-gotten gain. These anglers are bending or breaking the rules with almost no chance of ever being caught. But those gains will never last. Opportunities for ill-gotten gain come into our lives all the time. While we may never be caught, our very life may depend on how we handle these temptations to cheat. TIP Bass are not very aggressive in cold water. Use slow-moving baits and be patient. Janua