First time!

Recently I had the privilege and honor of taking someone hunting for the first time. Darrin Jordan, a friend of mine is no stranger to the outdoors. He had been known to “sore-lip” a trout with a dry fly on many occasions, however had never taken to the woods with heavy artillery in hand. Darrin had recently taken a Hunter Education course and thought he would like to put to use what he had learned so I obliged with an offer to turkey hunt. He accepted, and agreed to trade the suit and tie for camo and a 12-gauge shotgun for a mid-week hunt.

We hadn’t been in the woods long when we heard several old Toms thundering off in the distance in the early morning light. Their gobbles shook the treetops. I believe that Darrin got excited at this point. The gobblers decided not to cooperate at his point so we made a tactical retreat to another set-up. They must have liked what they heard then because they started heading our way. After several minutes of silence, they finally appeared – 3 Toms looking for love. The gobbler out front came within range but never offered a clear shot. I was an emotional wreck. With my heart pounding in my chest, I could already see my friend posing with his first turkey in front of the camera. And then it was over – the gobbler just walked away resisting to come back at my feeble attempts to call out to him with yelps, cuts, clucks and purrs. Darrin did a good job. He decided not to take a shot that many hunters would have tried to make. I guess he was paying attention in the Hunter Education class after all – “only take good clean shots that deliver a quick, ethical kill.” Not long after all this happened, I heard Darrin call his secretary and tell her to cancel his evening appointments because he was going to be hunting. I think he may trade that fly rod for a turkey vest and some decoys.

Later in the day, as I reflected on our day of hunting and Darrin’s first hunting experience, I couldn’t help but think of another first time. The time when I first realized that I was a sinner in need of a savior. It was during my college days that I found out that being a Christian was not about being “religious,” but about having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Up until that point in my life, I believed that being good was what it was all about. I was a “good guy.” I was nice. I didn’t cuss, or drink, or kill people. Then, I realized that no matter how good I was, I couldn’t be good enough. If I could, Jesus would have never had to die on the cross. I realized for the first time that God loved me so much that he sent his son to die for my sins and that He desired a relationship with me. Then and there, I decided to accept God’s free gift of his son Jesus. The good news is that Jesus didn’t just die for me, he died for you too. If you don’t know Jesus as your savior, why not try Him for the first time today.

We had a great time hunting, but I must admit that I was a little disappointed that I wasn’t able to help Darrin get his first turkey. Since he didn’t get one, I guess we’ll just have to go hunting again. It was a beautiful day – perfect for turkey hunting. I will always remember something that Darrin said while hunting during the day. While we were trying to locate another lovesick bird, we were talking about the wonderful weather and Darrin said, “It would be a beautiful day to kill a turkey.” The fact of the matter is that any day is a beautiful day to kill a turkey – Amen!

Jeremy B. Harrill