7.18.2015 Post
Rookie Mistakes
It was the perfect start to the season. I was up early
before the sunrise. I grabbed a breakfast bar and sipped on my coffee on the
way to my hunting spot. I had all of my
gear packed from the night before. I snuck into the woods in complete silence.
Now the tricky part…I had to get my climber on the tree and get up 25 feet
without making noise. I had failed at this before. O but not today! I put the
two parts of my climber on the tree without a squeak or a clang and then began
my ascent. I slowly and precisely shimmied my way up the tree I had sawed limbs
off of a few weeks prior. I reached the spot I was aiming for and started to
set up. I take off my backpack and pull out the screws for my compound bow and
the new one I have for my self-filming camera mount. I was extra careful not to
drop anything and ruin my super stealth opening day. Finally it is all set up.
All that is left is to turn around, hoist up my bow, sit down, and wait for
Craw Daddy the 10 point to show himself. I look and see the first signs of
light on the horizon. Perfection! I turn around without making a sound. I reach
for my belt loop. That’s where I connect the rope that ties to my bow to hoist
it up. No rope. I check all of my belt loops. No rope. I look down in utter
disbelief. I forgot to tie the bow rope onto my belt loop and my bow and the
rope are now 25 feet below me. I turn around to see that I have placed the
screws below my top climber cord and must remove everything before going down.
Twenty minutes later the sun is up and so am I. And I’m
covered in sweat. I hang my head and sigh. This sadly isn’t the first time I
have climbed the tree without the rope attached to me. Rookie mistakes. Except
I’m not a rookie.
Sometimes I shake my head at the dumb mistakes I make and
not just while hunting. It’s amazing to me that I can fall for the same tricks
over and over again that Satan puts out there for me. It’s crazy how I can
forget some of the most important things sometimes…such as…God is in control
and he can handle my worries. But when I crack open the Bible I can see that I
am not alone.
Paul writes in Romans 7:21-24 “So I find this law at work:
When I want to good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight
in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging
war against the law of my mind and making me prisoner of the law of sin at work
within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body
of death?”
I can so relate to that. As a Christian man, I have to admit
that I struggle with living the way that God wants me to. I make silly mistakes
and I don’t do what I want to do. And I have to ask that question: Who will
rescue me?
I like what Paul says next: “Thanks be to God through Jesus
Christ our Lord!
Man, am I glad that Jesus takes care of those rookie
mistakes I make and lets me live at peace with God! How about you?
