Outdoor Truths

For nearly twenty years I have made my way to the barn during rifle season. It's an easy place to go while enjoying so much. I park on one side, climb up the ladder, and walk to the other side where I'm sitting right now. At the moment, I'm penning this article while being warmed by my Buddy Heater, having just finished my small thermos of coffee. My seat is cushy and provides a good perch to watch the marginal eight-pointer mark the low-lying tree branch on the edge of the field. My boots are croc sandals, and an old pair of camouflage overalls are covering my blue jeans. This week the bucks are chasing doe, and while this is not the best area to see a big deer, it won't be unusual if a stray shows up within the range of my rifle. My little field that is just above me, is struggling to push up her winter peas because of the earlier drought, but she is doing enough to draw a daily portion of deer to her boundary. One of us sits in luxury and comfort while watching the other languish from difficulty. The juxtaposition is glaring. It is also a stark reminder of real life. While some may try to give a credible answer, there really is no rhyme or reason why some individuals seem to have less difficulties than others. And sometimes the distance between the two is as short as it is between my luxury, barn, box seat, and the field I watch. We have tried to tell people God "blesses" those who do good, but we all know some of the most "blessed" people are those who never think about God. We also know trouble can sure find a way into the lives of some good people. A tornado hits and saves one home, and the owner is quick to thank God for the "blessing." Her neighbor's house is destroyed. Was she not as "blessed?" I think when we apply this thinking, it moves us to a place we shouldn't go - the place where some "deserve" things while other don't. This is never good because it always causes us to compare ourselves to someone else. Again, this is never good and it's not of God. The truth about life is this. God has created the world to operate a certain way, and when we (anyone) works in conjunction with this design, he is, more often than not, blessed. When we go against this design, we (everyone) usually suffer. The other part of this is simply unknown. Her house was not saved because she was more blessed than the one whose house was destroyed, but her house was saved, and the other house was destroyed because God wants to show his handiwork in each of their lives but in different ways. And the reason you are where you are, is not because you are so much better or so much worse than your neighbor or friend. It's because God loves you and has a unique plan for your life - one that will bring about the most good for you and for those who God has put to watch.

~ www.outdoortruths.org