Thoughts from the woods

I spent five days in the woods over the past two weekends for the annual deer hunt. I didn't see many deer, but it seemed like everybody around me was. I heard gun shots all day and every day. It was easy to get frustrated and say "This isn't fair!" As I sat there, I felt God speaking to me about fairness and my definition of "fair". Is not seeing any deer a matter of fairness? I thought about how we all feel that we deserve this or deserve that and if we don't get it then life's not fair to us.

I thought people around me who truly had something unfair in their life. Is it fair that their son or daughter was killed in a car accident or in Iraq? Is it fair that their mother died of breast cancer when they were just ten years old? Is it fair that someone was born blind or with down syndrome? What is fair anyways?

I realized how selfish I am so often. I'm worried about getting my fair chance at a deer and there are people around us every day wondering if they are going to eat or if somebody they care about is going to live another day. I asked God to change my heart and my perspective. There is so much more to life than we make of it. I only have one life to spend, I want to spend it on what counts!

...just a little follow up. As I sat in the woods reflecting on my last day out this deer season, God blessed me with the opportunity to get a nice deer. It always amazes me that despite my selfishness, God still loves me and blesses me. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to hunt and get a deer. What a blessing we have to enjoy venison this next year.