tracks reveal a turkey is near
Sitting alone in a deer stand is a very good thing. It allows time for all the motions of life to come to a point of stillness and understanding. I love the sounds of the woods going quite from all my noises and then awakening to all their own sounds. I feel both grown up and manly in the woods, and at the same time young and childlike.
We are able to learn from God when we possess manly courage and childlike faith together. What I have discovered is that many struggle between the two forces rather than at repose between them. They are like hunters constantly loading and unloading their rifles rather than carefully awaiting their prey. Focus too much on yourself and you will often not see what it is that God has around you. Learn to still yourself so that you can see and hear God. He answers the ears of faith far more than we recognize. Listening is such a chore that we choose instead to be noise makers. Yet, hearing God has a rich reward beyond making ourselves known.
Developing the heart of a listener is a worthy endeavor, listening for God in all of life’s challenges. Even from the quite God can speak. I have often discovered in the woods that I was not alone, but that God was there looking for me. Allowing God to find you takes a quite spirit. A spirit that doesn’t promote and protect your agenda, but rather seeks to comprehend its surroundings. A hunter will call this “woodsmenship.” Perhaps we need more “woodsmenship” in our relationship with the Lord. A gentle listening spirit to His voice. He is not far from us.
