"I will make you become fishers of Men.” Luke 1:17

Jesus spoke these words to his would be disciples. He asked them to follow him and if they would follow him, he would change their profession from fishers of fish to fishers of men. Jesus understood the characteristics of a fisherman. He believed that these men would do a good job of catching men instead of fish. Those of us who are familiar with the art of fishing will understand the advantage a fisherman has over many other professionals.

A fisherman is someone, or must be someone, who has patience. If one does not have patience he/she will not be a good fisherman. Sometimes a fisherman will toil and labor for a long time before making a catch. Sometimes the catch will be a very small fish that you would like to set free for another day. Sometime the fish will even eat your bait but you will not catch it, but it is required of you that for every hook you cast, you must first bait that hook. To continue to fish, one must allow himself or herself to suffer a certain degrees of loss. It is not a certainty that every time you cast the net you will make a catch.Therefore, fishing is not a cheap profession. It requires human emotional as well as financial cost.

Those laboring in the vineyard of the Lord using the World Bible School program must have acquainted themselves with the pre-requisites for a fisherman. You send out a Bible correspondence lesson, but you are not sure whether you will receive the lesson back for grading. Sometimes you even receive the lesson for grading, but you are not sure the student will obey the gospel message of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. However, one needs to keep on sending the lessons.              

Mrs. Elaine Polk of Abilene, Texas is not new to the travails of sending out Bible correspondence lessons. However, her patience as a fisherman has yielded a reward for her seven years of fishing in Potiskum, Yobe State, Nigeria. Mrs. Polk sent a World Bible School correspondence course to me, Ibrahim G. Nyamor, who was then a Muslim living in Potiskum. When I received the lesson and started studying the Bible I found myself excited about God's word. I continued investigating and arguing with Elaine for seven years, until on May 9,1990 , Dr. Solomon Aguh, the Director of School of Biblical studies in Jos baptized me into our Lord Jesus Christ. I then attended and graduated from the School of Biblical Studies, Jos, in May of 1996.

In August of 2002, I left Nigeria for the United States of America to attend Freed-Hardeman University Henderson in Tennessee. In August of 2005, I graduated with both a BA and an MA degree in Bible at Freed-Hardeman University. I returned to Nigeria on August 10, and joined the teaching faculty of the School of Biblical Studies, Jos.

There are not enough words to say thank you to all those using the World Bible School Program as a tool for evangelism. Especially those teachers who are involve with the work in Nigeria. Let me again remind you that your labor of love is not in vain. Be patient and continue to cast your nets because the day of your sailing home with a big catch for the Lord is on its way. Thank you to Mrs. Elaine Polk. May our Lord continue to reward your good labors of love in his vineyard. Thank you to Nitro and the Savannah Church of Christ that have been my church families while in the states. Thank you every one who has been a part of my training. God bless you all. Ibrahim G. Nyamor.