Whether we are pursuing our cherished creatures or following the crucified Christ, may we never lose our way.
Most of the stories I write are from events that I have observed or experienced myself from my everyday life in the woods or on the water; but I believe it's how I choose to look at things that make them different.
This past deer season, my oldest son Reagan made a rather unsettling announcement. He walked into the room donning his camo attire and matter-of-factly stated “Daddy, I’m ready to hunt on my own.”
NO! I was reading Veggie Tales books to you in the deer stand just the other day! I can remember packing a sippy cup in my hunting bag for you the day before yesterday!
Time passes by and it does so quickly. He had displayed his ability to safely enter the stand, load the gun and I trusted his aim. He had already taken multiple deer with me by his side. Now, he was telling me that he didn’t need me anymore. And he was right. So, I loaded up my gear as he loaded up his. Then, he and I walked to a box stand on our property and I watched as he safely climbed into the stand with my old unloaded .308 on his shoulder. I didn’t even have to tell him to load the gun or get everything ready.
I felt a strange sense of sadness mingled with pride as I walked back to a lock-on a few hundred yards away that I had hung in anticipation of this day. My baby didn’t need me anymore. As I settled in, I was almost immediately molested by a herd of does. I didn’t shoot in hopes that one would stumble by my boy. As I was checking on one deer that didn’t provide a clean view of its head, I heard a shot. I unloaded my gun and climbed down. When I got to Reagan’s stand, I could see him standing in the shooting lane near the feeder. When I walked down to him, he was trying his best to remain calm as he pointed at to a red swath on the ground. He was overflowing with excitement as he said, "I did it, Daddy! I did it!"
As I knelt down to examine the blood, something caught my eye in the woods beside the lane. There lay his prize. When I looked back to tell him his deer was right there, he was grinning at me. He had already found her. I hugged my boy and told him how proud I was of him and then I told him he was right. He was ready. He had paid attention to my words. He watched me and mimicked my movements. He had been faithful to put into practice what he learned.
This reminds me of Matthew 25:21 which says "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' "
I started thinking later about how we all like to hear those words of praise for what we've done. It doesn't matter if it is from our spouse, parents or our own kids; it makes us feel good that someone is proud of us.
Can you imagine how good it will make us feel to hear our heavenly Father say that he is proud of what we have done with those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant?" That is my purpose here on Earth. Is it yours?
Like the Ben Dupree-Author page on Facebook for book ordering information, speaking engagement bookings and future book release dates.
This past deer season, my oldest son Reagan made a rather unsettling announcement. He walked into the room donning his camo attire and matter-of-factly stated “Daddy, I’m ready to hunt on my own.”
NO! I was reading Veggie Tales books to you in the deer stand just the other day! I can remember packing a sippy cup in my hunting bag for you the day before yesterday!
Time passes by and it does so quickly. He had displayed his ability to safely enter the stand, load the gun and I trusted his aim. He had already taken multiple deer with me by his side. Now, he was telling me that he didn’t need me anymore. And he was right. So, I loaded up my gear as he loaded up his. Then, he and I walked to a box stand on our property and I watched as he safely climbed into the stand with my old unloaded .308 on his shoulder. I didn’t even have to tell him to load the gun or get everything ready.
I felt a strange sense of sadness mingled with pride as I walked back to a lock-on a few hundred yards away that I had hung in anticipation of this day. My baby didn’t need me anymore. As I settled in, I was almost immediately molested by a herd of does. I didn’t shoot in hopes that one would stumble by my boy. As I was checking on one deer that didn’t provide a clean view of its head, I heard a shot. I unloaded my gun and climbed down. When I got to Reagan’s stand, I could see him standing in the shooting lane near the feeder. When I walked down to him, he was trying his best to remain calm as he pointed at to a red swath on the ground. He was overflowing with excitement as he said, "I did it, Daddy! I did it!"
As I knelt down to examine the blood, something caught my eye in the woods beside the lane. There lay his prize. When I looked back to tell him his deer was right there, he was grinning at me. He had already found her. I hugged my boy and told him how proud I was of him and then I told him he was right. He was ready. He had paid attention to my words. He watched me and mimicked my movements. He had been faithful to put into practice what he learned.
This reminds me of Matthew 25:21 which says "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' "
I started thinking later about how we all like to hear those words of praise for what we've done. It doesn't matter if it is from our spouse, parents or our own kids; it makes us feel good that someone is proud of us.
Can you imagine how good it will make us feel to hear our heavenly Father say that he is proud of what we have done with those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant?" That is my purpose here on Earth. Is it yours?
Like the Ben Dupree-Author page on Facebook for book ordering information, speaking engagement bookings and future book release dates.