Hebrews 13:5
I will never leave you nor forsake you
The bull elk stood facing us, not offering any shot opportunity. My bowhunting client stood at the ready, waiting for the bull to turn and offer a good broadside shot at just 20 yards. Suddenly the bull turned looked back over his shoulder, then he stepped to the right and turned around and slowly walked away. Over the years I’ve learned that if an elk looks back and begins to turn, you had better be ready to take the shot. My bowhunter didn’t know this and he wasn’t prepared and missed his opportunity to take a great bull. It wasn’t much of a consolation, but I offered, “That’s why they call it hunting and not killing”. He wasn’t impressed.
Over the last 40 years of guiding. I’ve used that saying often. Sometimes things happen fast and east, other times they come close, but things fall apart at the last minute. We often have no control over how they will end. We go home with a trophy or we go home with an empty cooler… Things happen.
Sometimes things come together, but other times they don't work out and the last thing you see is that old gobbler tucking his wings and running. "That's why they call it hunting and not killing." Over the years I've repeated that line many times, for myself and others. In fact more often than not I've come home empty handed.
Why do I keep doing it? For me, the attraction is knowing that each time I hit the woods, there is a chance that this time he might just make a mistake. Even when I find myself on the struggle bus, I just think, maybe tomorrow, because it can all change in a blink. In life, there are no 'sure things' or guarantees.
However, there is good news. With God there are guarantees. He promises to never leave us in Hebrews 13:5. In Psalm 46: 1-3 He promises to be our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. He promises to meet our needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus, in Philippians 4:19.
In our world we are promised “sure things” all the time, but there is no such thing in this world. God’s word gives us promises that we can count on as a “sure thing”. When all else seems to be falling apart… All the God has promised will hold together and us up!
Help achieve the mission - GIVE today
Click the button to sign up for Dean’s Daily Devotional. FREE and delivered daily.