Bible Study Verse:

Joshua 24:15

"But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." (NIV)

Thoughts:

A few springs ago, I was sitting in a portable ground blind turkey hunting with my 3 daughters - yep, we crammed all of us in. We had been patiently waiting all morning to get a crack at a nice tom, but it had been slow. As usual, we had our snack bag sitting down in front of us, and we had all taken turns of getting our favorite snacks out. As we sat there scanning the field, the plastic snack bag started to make noise under my feet. I looked down, thinking that a field mouse must have decided to raid our stash. To my surprise, I saw the back end of a snake exiting the tent. I was curious as to the type of snake it was, so I leaned out the tent to inspect it further. In my infinite wisdom (sarcasm intended), I chucked a rock at the snake to move it along, and the thing coiled up right there - just a rattlin' away. Well, I found out my answer as to what kind of snake it was immediately. We had had a rattler in our tent without us knowing. Oh, and by the way, I had told the girls they could have their rubber boots off because it was so hot that morning - not a good combination. (Dave M)

Action Point:

I have often deliberated in my Christian walk as to how the Great Commission was to be implemented in my life, when the Bible also talks about "bad company corrupting good character..." There seems to be a tension there between these two. Well, I believe God gave me my answer that Spring morning in my tent. I love the outdoors and all that goes with it - including snakes. They are a part of the outdoors world that I love. But, it doesn't mean that I want that snake in the tent with me. I can love all people - we're commanded to. But, that doesn't mean that I give all people access to my tent, where they influence what I believe and what I become. We need to be protective of what we allow in our tents, while still reaching out to the world around us.

Sportsmen's Tip of the Day:

When traveling to different parts of the country, try to know the different snakes of that region for your own safety.