Today I am writing from the kitchen table in our home. Some Door County Cherry Crème Coffee is just about done perking up a welcome home greeting for me.
Proverbs 19:20-21
Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
Yesterday my hunting partner and I decided that North Dakota was not going to produce any ducks for us. I quote him. "Maybe God is trying to tell us something" My reply was. "We had a safe week, the results are the same every day and I don't see anything improving. I have faith, but I too believe we should head home early and attend the funeral of our friend. If I have to pick a ditch to die in, this isn't the one." We fought the good fight, hunted hard but there comes a time when you just have to say, "Let's go home".
We drove about 12 hours straight through and arrived home very late. It was the right choice. Within hours of starting out my partner was sniffling, sneezing and just plain miserable with either the mother of all colds or one nasty allergic reaction to something. He is now home, comfortable in his own bed. I pray he is getting better.
Life lesson from this trip was 1. Give it your best, try hard and then try again. 2. Be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit and listen to His prompting. While hunting we prayed every day for those at home, those who needed prayer and for our safety. We arrived home safely and if you are going to be sick, there is no place like home. The second proof of our right decision was that four of the eight guys stayed one more day and texted us. "You made the right decision, another day of nothing".
I like the expression "pick the ditch you want to die in". This was not the one for me. There are times when after prayer you have to make the decision to move on and try another day. The circumstances you are in could become worse and swallow you up. But note! This is after prayer, a decision that when bounced off of others in prayer is confirmed by others you can trust, then you move on. This is very difficult to do and moving on needs to be Biblical and cannot be an immoral move. In this instance we did not violate Scripture by going home, we worked hard, something just wasn't right and we prayed and moved on. It was a difficult decision because of pride. But on the way home we found out that we were needed as pall bearers for our dear friend. If we had stayed we would not be able to help.
So home once again. Did I tell you that I am hunting later today, but in Wisconsin? The geese are flying!
Marty
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