A SEASON OF CHANGE

It’s autumn in the upper Midwest and the woods are truly beautiful.

The hot and humid summer air recently gave way to a more crisp and refreshing sensation. There seems to be more people out and about enjoying it as well. Whether hiking in the woods or walking down the street, the people I encounter seem more pleasant. The animals that stay for the winter are busy fattening up and the birds are preparing for their journey south. Of the four seasons, autumn is my favorite.

The variety of trees go through their own change differently; all going through the same change and preparing for the next season, but the process for each tree looks very different. The mighty white pines will shed their needles and instantly replace them, retaining a green foliage through the winter. The leaves of the oak will turn from green to brown, while certain maples turn a brilliant crimson. It creates quite a sight!

For people, it’s important for us to go through a season of autumn as well. Call it a time to shed some extra baggage if you will; a time to get rid of those things that keep us from preparing for our next season of growth. For some people that may appear seamless, like the white pine. For others, it may be kind of dull, like the oak. Of course, some will go through the season in a spectacular fashion that invokes oohs and ahhs, like the maple. Whichever way you get through your season, it’s that way because God created it just for you.

Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God-this is your true and proper worship.

DECISION DECISIONS

I have been blessed to have been given the opportunity to sit right next to both my sons when they had the opportunity to shoot at their first deer. This was a monumental moment in their youth.

 

“The boys,” as they are routinely called in our house, have heard deer hunting stories since birth. The stories range from the incredible food we eat (like beef stroganoff, homemade spaghetti and meatballs, and the “deer hunting cookies”) to stories of success and defeat in the woods. The boys had a good idea of what the woods looked like from pictures. So, when they turned 12 and had completed firearms safety training they could go with deer hunting. Once that happened we would start planning the trip. The boys would receive plenty of advice from the older men in our group. I gave them plenty of advice as well, but my final words were, “it's better to regret not taking a shot than to regret taking a bad one.”

The morning of the hunt would finally arrive. We’d pack up our gear and head to the woods. Once in our deer stand I’d offer a few last bits of advice. We’d quietly sit side by side in pitch black and wait for the woods to come alive. Whoever saw a deer first would tap the other person’s foot with their boot. For both boys the deer came from my side of the stand, which meant the boys could move about without being seen. In our woods, you typically only get a few seconds to make a good shot. That is when the adrenaline starts to pump. You can hear your heart pounding and wonder how the deer can’t hear it. The boys would shift back and forth trying the find the target in their sights. I could imagine them filtering through all the advice they received, and now it was time to make a decision; only a second left and the opportunity would be gone.

Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation where you’d had to make a difficult decision? Maybe it was a career path or relationship choice; you probably had all the information you needed and all that was left to do was to pull the trigger…or not.

As beautiful as this tree is, it seems unsure if it wants to change to autumn colors

For the boys, they each made a different decision. One shot and the other didn’t; and both decisions were correct for each situation. Both boys did harvest a deer during their first season, but they made sure it was the right decision for them in each situation.

In our family, we do a lot more praying about big decisions than we used to and because of that, we know we’ve made the right decision.

Proverbs 14:11 For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers.

 

 

 



HAVE FAITH AND JUST GO FOR IT

A few years back my immediate family (wife, both sons, and myself) took a vacation to Yellowstone National Park. There was a lot of planning involved; what route to take, where to stay, and what to see and do while we were there. One possibility was to make a day trip to Jackson, Wyoming and go white water rafting. Two of us really wanted to do it and the other two weren’t too keen on the idea. After much compromise from both sides we decided on a combo package. The package came with a scenic morning trip down a calm part of the river where the guide did all the paddling, a box lunch, and then a white water trip in the afternoon. It seemed like the perfect plan.

 

While on our Yellowstone vacation the day finally came to go rafting. We arrived at the outfitters in the morning, climbed onto a bus and headed to the river to meet our guide. Full disclosure - my wife was the one most anxious about white water rafting. She’s not an adrenaline junky, so the calm water scenic trip was a nice way start to the day. Our guide for the morning was a pleasant college aged fella who immediately put my wife’s mind to ease about rafting. We grabbed our gear, jumped in the raft, and eased our way down the Snake River with the Grand Tetons as the backdrop. It was very pleasant.

 

Afterwards, we returned to the outfitters and enjoyed our lunch. You could feel the excitement start to build as the time drew near for our afternoon trip. Ok, some were more excited, while others were more anxious.

 

Once again, we climbed on a bus and headed to a different part of the river…the white water area. On the bus was the four of us and a family of six. This slightly eased my wife’s anxiety, thinking it would be better with more people on the raft. We arrived at the river’s edge and exited the bus. There were two pleasant college aged guides waiting for us - one for us and one for the other family; this immediately displeased my wife. The guide hurried us into life jackets and started to pass out paddles. My wife politely explained to him she would not be paddling and would be sitting in the middle of the raft. The guide explained she had to paddle in order for us to make it through the rapids. She didn’t like this dude as much as our earlier guide. We all climbed into the raft and headed downstream, a paddle in my wife’s hand while she sat on the edge of the raft. The guide taught us techniques and would bark out the commands when needed. We came to our first set of rapids; he barked out commands and we faired very well. “That wasn’t bad,” my wife said. “That wasn’t nothing,” the guide replied. This dude was not winning points with my wife. We went through several more small rapids and got very comfortable with our technique. Then we saw it…the BIG rapids.



“Oh My God!!!” we all said out loud. “This is it, here we go!” said the guide. (The name of this rapid is the Lunch Counter, look it up.) The guide barked out orders; we paddled, we screamed, we paddled harder, the guide kept barking at us, water splashed all around, and finally we made it out. The screaming turned to laughter and everyone was smiling at this point. We continued down the river and encountered several more rapids. We arrived at our exit point and climbed back on the bus. I asked my wife if she had a good time and if she’d do it again…yes she would!

Actual video of our white water trip: https://youtu.be/JEdILUwmMfI

We all agreed the guide was awesome. He taught us everything we needed to know to conquer the challenge/fear we were about to face.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

 

 



JUST RELAX

The drive to my favorite fly fishing river takes about an hour. I live in a large Midwest City. The voyage typically starts with picking up a good friend of mine, we grab a bite to eat, and head down the highway. With every passing mile the hustle and bustle of the city fades away. Our conversations are about anything and everything, but typically turns toward fishing. Thirty minutes into the trip we enter the rolling farm lands of western Wisconsin; soon we’re descending down the bluffs through mature hardwoods, and arrive at the small town that neighbors the river. The Catholic Church is within walking distance of the honey hole and has a nice parking lot; we pull into the back corner, grab our gear, and head to different spots on the river.

 

As I walk the lush green embankment that gradually slopes down to the rivers’ edge, the summer sun warms the back of my neck. Looking up to the bright blue sky, the occasional fluffy white cloud slowly lumbers by. The opposing bank is high and steep, concealed with a variety of large trees and heavy vines. The narrow river snakes through the valley carrying a few leaves and insects as it passes by. The water swirls around boulders and fallen timber, creating riffles that softly bubble along. I raise my fly rod, whip the tip backwards behind me, and methodically bring it forward pointing towards the desired landing place for the fly. The fly wisps past me and lands just above the riffle; the current pushing it from side to side through the torrent water, and finally drifts to the calm pool just ahead of the next bend. Several more cast are made before all the clutter in mind starts to fade away. Eventually my mind is clear and my entire focus is on the fly drifting through the water. On occasion, a trout rises to ingest the fly, slap the water, and pull the line tight. This is one of my favorite ways to relax.

 

Everyone has their own way to relax and unwind. Sometimes we need to clear our mind of the clutter and purify it.

Ezekiel 20:6-7 I took a solemn oath that day that I would bring them out of Egypt to a land I had discovered and explored for them-a good land, a land flowing with milk and honey, the best of all lands anywhere. Then I said to them, “Each of you, get rid of the vile images you are so obsessed with. Do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt, for I am you God”.

 

 

 



GOOD TIMES

Recently, it was my younger brother’s birthday and his wife wanted to surprise him with new fishing gear and a fishing trip with me. Now, just so you understand, a fishing trip with me means you’ll be in a boat on the water, and odds are there will be fish somewhere in the water.

I get a little anxious when someone wants to fish with me. The reason is because I’m not the best fisherman in world and feel pressure to be a good guide. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve caught plenty of fish in my life. The fish species has ranged from perch to king salmon, on upper Midwest inland lakes to a couple of the Great Lakes. The objective when fishing is to obviously catch whichever species I’m after, but most importantly, to enjoy God’s creation.

It’s important to me for the other person to have a good time. On our recent trip, my brother reminded me that everyone has a different definition of a good time. The plans were all set. I did some research and found a highly recommended nearby lake; so off we went. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in July. The hot summer sun was shining and thankfully there was a strong breeze to keep us cool. We started fishing by a patch of lily pads that was known to hold bass and sunfish. Our set up was simple; a bobber and a plan red hook tipped with a night crawler. It didn’t take long and my brother’s bobber started dancing around and then darted under water. While he was reeling the fish in, I could see it was a small sunfish, so I focused my gaze back at my bobber. Once my brother got the fish in the boat he said with a grin on his face, “my first fish of the year.” It immediately occurred to me what having a “good time” meant to him. We took a quick picture and released the seemingly bigger fish back to the water. It was a really good time with my brother! We changed fishing tactics a few times throughout the day and the fish did get bigger.

 

Sometimes, it feels like we don’t have a lot to offer; you may be surprised how much that means to someone else.

 

 Luke 6:38 Give, and it will be given to you.

 

 



SOMETIMES ONE FEELS 5,000 YEARS OLD

The thought crossed my mind to find out what the oldest tree in the world is…and now you’re probably wondering what it is, too. So, of course, I turned to the internet. The internet is usually pretty reliable; not 100% accurate, but a good place to start. As I starting typing “world’s oldest tree,” pictures of towering Redwoods came to mind.  You know, the huge trees big enough to carve a tunnel through their trunk to fit a car.

Nope, not the Redwood.

Maybe, a majestic oak with its hardwood trunk and branches; surely that could withstand the test of time.

Nope, not the oak either.

Finally, the internet showed the results of the ‘world’s oldest tree”…the bristlecone pine. It wasn’t big and bad like I was expecting; it was twisted and kind of messy looking. The name alone didn’t sound very powerful. Bristlecone, the name seems more fitting for a hair brush. Pine trees are typically a softer wood and don’t usually hold up well to abuse.

However, there it is, the Bristlecone Pine at almost 5,000 years old.

In order to survive tough times in life, one usually thinks of needing to be big and strong, towering with power and poise. That’s not always the case. Yes, there are times when physical strength alone is beneficial.  A few situations that come to mind are dragging a whitetail deer out of the woods, canoeing to a great fishing spot, or opening that jar of salsa.  At the end of the day (or  5,000 years), sometimes we feel a little soft on the inside, need to be a bit more flexible, and even though things look messy at times, that’s where God wants us at the moment.

Matthew 5:7-8 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

 

 

 



KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE BALL, THE PRIZE...WHATEVER YOUR THING IS

At this point, I’m going to take a break from the woods and water and move to the baseball diamond. This time of year my wife and I get to spend a lot of time at the baseball field; baseball is an outdoor activity, so of course that’s a win for me.

 

Both of our sons are avid baseball players. They have tried other sports over the years, but baseball has always been their main focus. I coached our oldest son on and off up through sixth grade and coached our youngest exclusively from t-ball through 7^th grade. Their success and talents were earned on their own. When the boys got old enough to try-out for higher competitive teams, my wife and I told them, “you will make this team on your own merit; we will not pull any strings or do favors to get you on the team.” However, whichever team they made, we would volunteer when we could.

 

Over the years they’ve experienced success and failure; they’ve had really good coaches and really bad coaches. They’ve experienced firsthand the politics of youth sports, but never let any of those affect their passion for the game. Currently, the oldest (19) is on an amateur team and hasn’t won a single game this season. He’s not happy about it, but he still goes to every game and plays his best, and he does it without any hesitation. The youngest (15) is on a VFW sponsored summer league. His team is having a successful season, but he’s not connecting well with the coach. He also goes to every game without hesitation and plays his best. They both do a very good job of staying focused on the big picture and don’t let the negative elements distract them. Yeah, you could say I’m a proud father.

 

What would life be like if we focused on our main objective, the big picture, and not let the negative elements distract us? What would one’s faith be like if we did the same for that as well?

 

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.