blong
Senior Member
A great friend of mine wrote this down today from a recent Mo trip:
Missouri 2013
I wanted to share something with all of you that occurred last week in Missouri. First off, let me say that I never preach to anyone and I’m not preaching now, but I wanted to share this story while it is fresh on my mind. Now keep in mind that I know I am a sinner and I don’t always live like I should, but I do know Jesus and I know where I am going when He calls me up. So with that being said, I encourage you to read below. My fellow Christian Hunters will certainly appreciate this story. Forgive the length but here it is.
As most of you know, we have a large group of pals that take off every April to go turkey hunting in Missouri. And for the last several years, most of us have decided to attend a local church up there. Sort of a “Blessing of the Hunt” I guess you would say. At any rate, in 2012, we chose a different church. We opted to go to Liberty General Baptist Church. This is a small church compared to what some of us are accustomed to. This particular Sunday, they were without their pastor as his wife was ill. The sound system was out, and there were only about 15 people tops attending service. We heard testimony from a couple of different folks that day and it was a real blessing that the church was pursuing through their issues and forged ahead. They don’t pass a plate at this church as to not offend or embarrass anyone that can’t afford to tithe. Instead there is a box at the back of the church for anyone that can afford to give. The church was absolutely excited to have us there and we promised that if things worked out, we would see them again next year.
So fast forward to the present. TurkeyPaloosa 2013 is here and the gang is back in Missouri for another hunt. Several of us decide to make good on our word and we return to Liberty General Baptist Church. The Pastor and his wife were back. The sound system restored. And every single person in the church made their way around to welcome us to the service. We SO underestimated this church and the power of Christ based on our previous visit……. What ensued was one of the top services that I have ever sat through in my 39 years of attending church. It started with an invitation for anyone who wanted to come up front and sing as there was no set “choir”. They started off with I’ll Fly Away which is one of my all time favorites. Then followed 4 more specials from different folks. Each one as good as the other. One gentleman, dressed in his blue jean overalls, (who told me after church that before he found the Lord, could not dare stand in front of a church much less sing), played his guitar to a song he had written about several of their members who had since past away. The song was titled as to what he believed their message would be………”Keep on Keepin On”. I wish I could paint a better picture for yall. It was quite moving. Another lady that sang like an Angel did “Holy Ground”. It was just a fantastic series of songs by some good old fashioned country folks.
Then came Bro Brad Pellham….. Bro. Brad had a little fire in him that Sunday and I loved it. His sermon was focused on having Faith. Furthermore, having faith when you can’t see what’s ahead. Having faith in God knowing that He is there even though you can’t “see” Him. Bro. Brad opted to use the Mississippi boys in his sermon to relay a message that everyone could understand. It was incredible.
I will try my best to help you understand what I felt and just how everything went down for me a day later in the turkey woods. I may as well have been sitting right back in that pew Monday because I relived that message exactly as to how he preached it and furthermore, when I began to fold a little bit, God reminded me…..
So here goes. Bro Brad said that he wanted us all to have faith. He said for example, you turkey hunters have faith right now that you are going to get a turkey in the morning……to which we all said, “yes sir”. Then he said your faith is gonna grow a little stronger when you step into those woods and actually hear that turkey gobble right…….we said “yes sir”. Then he said, you are gonna call to him and he is gonna gobble and the faith will get even stronger. Then you are gonna see is head coming through those woods and your faith will be at an ALL TIME HIGH….. At this point, we are all fired up. Then Bro. Brad says,,,, but God wants you to have faith EVEN when you can’t see Him……. Now I don’t know if yall can get that picture, but for an old country boy, that’s about as simple as it gets….. Bro. Brad finished his sermon and asked Mr. Leonard to close with a prayer. He acknowledged in the prayer that “these boys” (that was us) told them that we would come back and we made good on our word and for that, he prayed for our hunt and safety. So that closed out the service and again, most everyone spoke to us on the way out and we hung around a few and talked and thanked them for the blessing and promised once again to see them next year. Good Lord willing, we certainly will.
Fast forward to opening day. One day later.. Now keep in mind that I still have this sermon bouncing around in my head…… ‘Cause it was just that good… So I’m in the woods right…….and I don’t “see” any turkeys…. A little while goes by and in the field beside where I am hunting, I hear a gunshot. But instead of leaving, I move about 50 yards or so and decide to sit down and let the woods settle down because I know there are turkeys there, even though I can’t “see” them. Ha. So a little time goes by and I decide to call. 2 turkeys gobble… One is way off but the second one a bit closer, so I sit a while and the turkey gobbles off and on for a while out in front of me... Then he gets quiet. Oh the dreaded quietness that all of us turkey hunters hate…. Is he coming in quiet or is he gone. So I maintain my silence for what seemed like 20 minutes or so. Couldn’t stand it any longer, then I make another call and nothing. At that point, I decide to get aggressive with the call and when I do, a different turkey behind me rips off a gobble at maybe 80 to 100 yards. So I get turned around on the tree, looking in the right direction, and the replay of Bro. Brad’s sermon kicks in. He keeps gobbling even though I’m not saying a word and the more he gobbles, the more nervous I get. I sit there several minutes and I’m raking leaves and he is rippin it. SLOWLY coming……….at least I think. And then all of a sudden, silence…………now at first, I am re-living that sermon in my head and I have utter faith that that turkey is coming even though I can’t see him…. Minutes go by. I’m silent but so is the Tom…. What feels like 20 minutes (probably more like 10) goes by and still nothing so I decide to yelp real soft and I get nothing…I give it a few more minutes and call and still nothing… And I think about the sermon and I think where I went wrong and I don’t understand. I give it a few more minutes and call and nothing again…. At this point, I am afraid to say it, but I have lost my faith that this bird was coming. I decide to gather my stuff to go chase another turkey when low and behold, I stand up by my tree, I am about to make a step (which all you turkey hunters know what that would do if there was a turkey still there) and he gobbles for no reason……..WOW. So I sit back down, get in position, make one call and he rips it again. I’m at the point where all turkey hunters have been feeling absolute confidence that he is coming and at any second, I will see his head. Maybe 5 minutes go by, I haven’t made another sound, and I see his head coming through the woods. Then I see his fan….Here he comes, full strut… First turkey I have ever heard drum in the wild. So I have to watch and I decide that when he goes behind this one big tree, I can make what little move I needed to make, and he will be in my sights. So while waiting on him to make those last few yards, I am at such peace reliving this sermon that Bro. Brad gave. In those last few moments, I replayed that message and it applied to me perfectly. I sat there and thought about what happened and how I honestly believe that God put me in check. If I had made that step when I got up from that tree when he had quit gobbling the first time, the bird would have been gone. But instead, it was as if God used that turkey and made him gobble before I spooked him as if to say, shame on you for losing your faith…and he gave me a second chance…. It was at about that moment, when the Tom made those last few steps and I fired. I had harvested one of the biggest turkeys I have ever killed. I was overwhelmed and when I stood over that turkey and I thought about that message, I had tears flowing from my eyes…. Not ashamed to say it… Not at all. My God is awesome and I know it…… And he is always there whether we see Him or not. He has been there through the loss of StepDad, my Dad, my little sister, and my little nephew… While we can’t always understand the plan He has, He is always there. Whether you can “see” Him or not.
Missouri 2013
I wanted to share something with all of you that occurred last week in Missouri. First off, let me say that I never preach to anyone and I’m not preaching now, but I wanted to share this story while it is fresh on my mind. Now keep in mind that I know I am a sinner and I don’t always live like I should, but I do know Jesus and I know where I am going when He calls me up. So with that being said, I encourage you to read below. My fellow Christian Hunters will certainly appreciate this story. Forgive the length but here it is.
As most of you know, we have a large group of pals that take off every April to go turkey hunting in Missouri. And for the last several years, most of us have decided to attend a local church up there. Sort of a “Blessing of the Hunt” I guess you would say. At any rate, in 2012, we chose a different church. We opted to go to Liberty General Baptist Church. This is a small church compared to what some of us are accustomed to. This particular Sunday, they were without their pastor as his wife was ill. The sound system was out, and there were only about 15 people tops attending service. We heard testimony from a couple of different folks that day and it was a real blessing that the church was pursuing through their issues and forged ahead. They don’t pass a plate at this church as to not offend or embarrass anyone that can’t afford to tithe. Instead there is a box at the back of the church for anyone that can afford to give. The church was absolutely excited to have us there and we promised that if things worked out, we would see them again next year.
So fast forward to the present. TurkeyPaloosa 2013 is here and the gang is back in Missouri for another hunt. Several of us decide to make good on our word and we return to Liberty General Baptist Church. The Pastor and his wife were back. The sound system restored. And every single person in the church made their way around to welcome us to the service. We SO underestimated this church and the power of Christ based on our previous visit……. What ensued was one of the top services that I have ever sat through in my 39 years of attending church. It started with an invitation for anyone who wanted to come up front and sing as there was no set “choir”. They started off with I’ll Fly Away which is one of my all time favorites. Then followed 4 more specials from different folks. Each one as good as the other. One gentleman, dressed in his blue jean overalls, (who told me after church that before he found the Lord, could not dare stand in front of a church much less sing), played his guitar to a song he had written about several of their members who had since past away. The song was titled as to what he believed their message would be………”Keep on Keepin On”. I wish I could paint a better picture for yall. It was quite moving. Another lady that sang like an Angel did “Holy Ground”. It was just a fantastic series of songs by some good old fashioned country folks.
Then came Bro Brad Pellham….. Bro. Brad had a little fire in him that Sunday and I loved it. His sermon was focused on having Faith. Furthermore, having faith when you can’t see what’s ahead. Having faith in God knowing that He is there even though you can’t “see” Him. Bro. Brad opted to use the Mississippi boys in his sermon to relay a message that everyone could understand. It was incredible.
I will try my best to help you understand what I felt and just how everything went down for me a day later in the turkey woods. I may as well have been sitting right back in that pew Monday because I relived that message exactly as to how he preached it and furthermore, when I began to fold a little bit, God reminded me…..
So here goes. Bro Brad said that he wanted us all to have faith. He said for example, you turkey hunters have faith right now that you are going to get a turkey in the morning……to which we all said, “yes sir”. Then he said your faith is gonna grow a little stronger when you step into those woods and actually hear that turkey gobble right…….we said “yes sir”. Then he said, you are gonna call to him and he is gonna gobble and the faith will get even stronger. Then you are gonna see is head coming through those woods and your faith will be at an ALL TIME HIGH….. At this point, we are all fired up. Then Bro. Brad says,,,, but God wants you to have faith EVEN when you can’t see Him……. Now I don’t know if yall can get that picture, but for an old country boy, that’s about as simple as it gets….. Bro. Brad finished his sermon and asked Mr. Leonard to close with a prayer. He acknowledged in the prayer that “these boys” (that was us) told them that we would come back and we made good on our word and for that, he prayed for our hunt and safety. So that closed out the service and again, most everyone spoke to us on the way out and we hung around a few and talked and thanked them for the blessing and promised once again to see them next year. Good Lord willing, we certainly will.
Fast forward to opening day. One day later.. Now keep in mind that I still have this sermon bouncing around in my head…… ‘Cause it was just that good… So I’m in the woods right…….and I don’t “see” any turkeys…. A little while goes by and in the field beside where I am hunting, I hear a gunshot. But instead of leaving, I move about 50 yards or so and decide to sit down and let the woods settle down because I know there are turkeys there, even though I can’t “see” them. Ha. So a little time goes by and I decide to call. 2 turkeys gobble… One is way off but the second one a bit closer, so I sit a while and the turkey gobbles off and on for a while out in front of me... Then he gets quiet. Oh the dreaded quietness that all of us turkey hunters hate…. Is he coming in quiet or is he gone. So I maintain my silence for what seemed like 20 minutes or so. Couldn’t stand it any longer, then I make another call and nothing. At that point, I decide to get aggressive with the call and when I do, a different turkey behind me rips off a gobble at maybe 80 to 100 yards. So I get turned around on the tree, looking in the right direction, and the replay of Bro. Brad’s sermon kicks in. He keeps gobbling even though I’m not saying a word and the more he gobbles, the more nervous I get. I sit there several minutes and I’m raking leaves and he is rippin it. SLOWLY coming……….at least I think. And then all of a sudden, silence…………now at first, I am re-living that sermon in my head and I have utter faith that that turkey is coming even though I can’t see him…. Minutes go by. I’m silent but so is the Tom…. What feels like 20 minutes (probably more like 10) goes by and still nothing so I decide to yelp real soft and I get nothing…I give it a few more minutes and call and still nothing… And I think about the sermon and I think where I went wrong and I don’t understand. I give it a few more minutes and call and nothing again…. At this point, I am afraid to say it, but I have lost my faith that this bird was coming. I decide to gather my stuff to go chase another turkey when low and behold, I stand up by my tree, I am about to make a step (which all you turkey hunters know what that would do if there was a turkey still there) and he gobbles for no reason……..WOW. So I sit back down, get in position, make one call and he rips it again. I’m at the point where all turkey hunters have been feeling absolute confidence that he is coming and at any second, I will see his head. Maybe 5 minutes go by, I haven’t made another sound, and I see his head coming through the woods. Then I see his fan….Here he comes, full strut… First turkey I have ever heard drum in the wild. So I have to watch and I decide that when he goes behind this one big tree, I can make what little move I needed to make, and he will be in my sights. So while waiting on him to make those last few yards, I am at such peace reliving this sermon that Bro. Brad gave. In those last few moments, I replayed that message and it applied to me perfectly. I sat there and thought about what happened and how I honestly believe that God put me in check. If I had made that step when I got up from that tree when he had quit gobbling the first time, the bird would have been gone. But instead, it was as if God used that turkey and made him gobble before I spooked him as if to say, shame on you for losing your faith…and he gave me a second chance…. It was at about that moment, when the Tom made those last few steps and I fired. I had harvested one of the biggest turkeys I have ever killed. I was overwhelmed and when I stood over that turkey and I thought about that message, I had tears flowing from my eyes…. Not ashamed to say it… Not at all. My God is awesome and I know it…… And he is always there whether we see Him or not. He has been there through the loss of StepDad, my Dad, my little sister, and my little nephew… While we can’t always understand the plan He has, He is always there. Whether you can “see” Him or not.
