Practice, Practice, Practice

I dont know about you but I know that I need to practice before I get into the woods. This last week our outdoor team "Call of the Wild" had the chance to break in our new Rinehart targets in the woods and hills of one of the Reformed Church in America's camps at Inspiration Hills.

It felt so good to be back in the woods slinging arrows. I can tell you though that I was rusty, and my muscles were not used to all the shooting we did since I embarrassingly admit that I had not picked up my bow since November when I shot my last buck. It did not take long though to get arrows flying back on target, but I did have to reset a few things. Not sure what happened but I may have changed my anchor point (the place you draw the bow back to) and that changed my arrow flight by 3-6 inches on target. That may not seem like much but if you are a bowhunter you know that 3-6 inches can mean a shot on the vitals and a short blood trail, or an arrow through the guts leaving you little blood and often no deer at the end of hours of painstakingly crawling around searching for sign.

So before I head into the woods I practice by shooting hundreds of arrows preparing for that one shot. I practice standing, kneeling, uphill, downhill shots at ranges from 15 yds to 45 yds on a regular basis. But I have found 3D target shoots are the best practice you can get for hunting. You experience real world hunting scenarios and only get one or two shots at ranges from 10 to 70 yds. You learn to take your time and focus to make each arrow count. Often 3d targets are at distances that you would not normally take a shot at it, but they build your confidence for the real thing.

You know the Sabbath (ie. Sunday for most) is also about practice-creating a rhythm for your life; a day to praise God and rest, a time to spend time with family. The Sabbath is about taking time to notice the small things in life and pause and reflect upon God is the one who is in control. Worship takes practice and that is why it is so important because if we are not worshiping on a regular basis you will find that your arrows will not fly accurately or that your anchor point who should be Jesus will change overtime to another anchor point like money, sex, alcohol, or even your own strength.

Surprisingly even Ted Nugent seems to understand this. If you watch Uncle Ted you know when he draws the bow every time he says aloud or silently-Father- as he draws, Son -as he anchors it, and Spirit- as he releases the arrow and sends it on target. Uncle Ted rarely misses because he has taken time to create rhythm, and practice is the only thing that maintains that rhythm.

The next time you are in worship reflect upon the Christian practices that create rhythm in your life. If you are father or a husband take the role of the one who sets the spiritual rhythm in the lives God has placed under your watch. If you are not sure what that means or how to do it, ask someone who walks the trails of life with you and is no greenhorn in the ways of Jesus.

A Holy Broadhead

My wife Becca has an uncle whose name is Jim Winn. Jim lives in California and he is a flint knapper which means he practices the ancient art of making stone arrowheads, knives, and figurines. He is so good at what he does that he has worked for National Geo. and the Discovery channel when they have produced shows on neolithic man and the Aztecs. At family gatherings we often get to see Jim in action. He begins with a carefully selected large chunk of rock that he has found in the wild back country somewhere.

He then begins to pound on the rock with one of his stone tools, or a bone tool from elk or deer antler. He breaks that large stone down until the piece of stone he intends to work with is palm size if it is to be an arrowhead. This palm size stone is jagged with sharp edges and then Jim begins the meticulous work of chipping off the flint until it is a fine very sharp stone edge.

Before long that stone in the master flint knappers hand of the likes of Jim's turns from a rock into a deadly stone broad-head or a beautiful piece of art.

It is now past Easter but during Lent we often read from Isaiah 53, 3"He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him." 5 "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."

The point I want to make is that Jesus was like a stone in his Father's hand. In scripture it talks about Jesus being the Rock, the stone the builders rejected, the capstone, and the keystone.

I want to throw out another image-Jesus was the Rock who in his Father's hand at the cross was crushed. This suffering servant in Isaiah is Jesus at the cross, "a man of sorrows" , and there was nothing in his physical appearance that would cause us to desire him. Who knows exactly what Jesus looked like but it doesn't really matter, what matters is what he became. The sinless one became sin for us and took upon himself a cruel death we deserved in order that we might be freed from the Devil's grasp.

Hebrews 2:10 "In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering...Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— ¹⁵and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death."

In the hands of his Father, Jesus who was the stone the builders rejected, was crushed at the cross. As Jesus hung upon the cross, his adversary the Devil looked on in joy not realizing that God the Father was crushing his son and at the same time breaking, chipping, and knapping him into a Holy Arrowhead. Unknown to Satan, Jesus was the Rock that his Father had carefully selected, prepared, and then used to create the perfect broad-head able to pierce the prince of darkness and bring down the great Dragon/Serpent- the Devil.

When we rest in God's hand we too can trust the master knapper's design for our life. That plan will always include the breaking of our stone hearts- which represent our lives. On this side of heaven,we will experience pain, loss, and struggle, but out of it God will shape our lives into holy weapons used to wage war on the forces of darkness, or create in us beauty that will turn the eyes of people back to the Father "The Master Knapper."

I Peter 2: ⁴"As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— ⁵you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."