I Timothy 6:17-19
“17. Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; 18. That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; 19. Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”
Some hunters think that you could label turkey hunting an “easy street,” but that’s just not the case! I am thankful that God opened the door to hunting Pennsylvania for the first time ever this spring season. I was excited to get into camp the night before opening day. Before getting packed up and making my way to PA, I woke up and spent some time with the Lord, along with getting some office work done before having a few days off.
That particular morning, I was in Proverbs 3. I have read this chapter many times, and God has used it many times in my life. “Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbor, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.” (Proverbs 3:27-28) There have been different seasons where God used these verses to direct me toward helping someone, but I must say it has been a while. I knew God was prompting me to be ready to help someone if needed, and in my heart, I committed to the Lord that I would do whatever He would lead me to do.
As I packed the truck and hit the road, it was getting late in the afternoon. I had a little over 2 hours of driving, and I had previous plans to make a stop along the way. It was at this stop that the Holy Spirit made it abundantly clear why He had given me Proverbs 3 earlier that morning. Without delay, I obeyed God and tried to be a blessing where God was leading me.
I was planning to hunt with a newer hunter who had never killed a turkey. He is also in the ministry, and I was praying that God would give us a great time and a successful hunt. We had plans to meet up that evening and do a little shooting, but that was cancelled due to some things on his end. Though my trip was delayed an extra hour and a half, I still made it to the hunting property to hear a few gobblers sound off before going to bed. It was almost like they were saying their evening prayers and didn’t care who heard them.
The loggers had just finished logging the entire property a few days before the season started. This caused most every bird to roost just off the property. As the sun came up the next morning, we set up as close as we could to the birds I had heard the night before. After hitting the ground, they were good and responsive, but too far to get excited. Within the first hour, we heard the aftermath of a hunter squeezing his trigger.
As the morning went on, we moved to another area of the property. The evangelist I was hunting with had to leave by 8 a.m. As I watched him walk across the field back to his house, he stopped and started pointing over the hill. It seemed like he was hearing something, so I headed in his direction. As I got closer, there was a group of birds gobbling quite well. He went to the house, and I set up just off the ridge. They answered my first call, but then never gobbled again. You can only hunt until 12 p.m. on the first couple weeks of the PA turkey season. I heard one other bird around 1130 and walked out right at quitting time.
As Monday morning rolled around, I tried to give myself enough time to read and pray before heading up the hill. The evangelist that I was hunting with texted me at 4:40 a.m. and said he did not feel well and was going back to bed. As I read that morning, I found myself in the main context of I Timothy 6:17. This verse says that the rich people of this world are not to trust in riches that perish but in the living God. The verse ends with this: “…who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.”
If that doesn’t encourage you in the morning, I don’t know what will. The living God has so much for us. He will not only take care of all of our needs, but He will also give us great things to enjoy. As I finished my reading and headed up the hill, there was an anticipation that the morning might turn out to be successful.
It was a bit cloudy that morning, and as it became legal shooting time, I had yet to hear the first gobble. They finally decided to start waking up, as it got a little lighter. I had at least two birds across the ridge on a neighboring property. They were the first birds I could hear as morning became brighter. I have seen birds fly off the roost and come gliding in from other ridges before, but that hasn’t happened for me too often. I thought it was worth getting down off my ridge and at least closing the gap to see what they would do when they flew down or even after.
I was having trouble finding a road that would take me down the hill. I knew if I went to the very end of the ridge, I could find a connecting road that would take me lower, but I was hoping to find a closer road that would help me drop off quicker. I was still fairly new to the property, and the new dozer roads were all new to me. The tree tops were thick, and all I could find were roads that paralleled the top of the ridge. I finally decided I would just walk the road out to the end of the ridge and get on a road I was familiar with from Saturday. As I neared the end, not one, not two, but three birds began to sound off.
I could tell all three of the birds were not far off the property. These were definitely birds that could be killed right off the roost because they didn’t have far to come to cross the property line. All the treetops made great cover, and I quietly sat down as they began to stretch their morning vocal cords!
One bird was close, and another was just down over the ridge a short distance. I sat down at the Y of two roads with hopes they would come to the right side of the treetops for an easy shot. I am left-handed, and that was the most comfortable position for me. If they swing to my left, I will need to shoot right-handed, which will require me to move. They were talking enough that I felt I could make the switch if needed because the tree tops were very thick.
I soft-called once while they were still in the tree, but they did not respond. They continued to gobble, so I sat quietly and waited. It seemed like a morning where they stayed in the trees much longer than other days. The gobbling stayed consistent, and it finally hit at a time when I was trying to determine if they were on the ground yet. I could tell the bird over the hill was making his way up, but the closest bird was still in the tree. I called semi-aggressively for a short moment, and they both responded without hesitation. Finally, the closer bird was on the ground, and I could tell that two of the three were together. I never called again, and sure enough, they started making their way to my right side, where I was hoping they would come.
They never stopped gobbling. I flipped off my safety, shouldered my gun, and stayed as still as possible. Once on the ground, they were both committed to finding their morning ladies. I saw the first bird pop out about 25 yards away. I could have shot him when I first saw him, but I wanted to make sure he was a mature bird and clear of some branches that were partly covering my view. In a short time, he stepped out at 20 yards and went right down! When your heartbeat pounds through your eardrums is hard to understand why everyone doesn’t turkey hunt! Praise the Lord for a great bird on the ground!
Over the years, I have been blessed to take many wild animals, but as I get older in life, I realize the hunts become more special when you realize God is in control of it all. It’s never anything I’ve done to take an animal, but it’s the rich things He gives us to enjoy. Every hunt has a story, but when God gives you a passage of scripture that puts all the puzzle pieces together, it makes it that much better!
As I dwelled on I Timothy 6:17–19 the rest of the morning, God reminded me of the obedience I had toward Him a few days before that. Verse 18, “…ready to distribute…” God is so faithful. Little did I realize that when God led me to help someone a few days before, He was giving me a story—a testimony to write about His faithfulness!
There have been times in my life when the world’s riches have gotten the best of me. It caused me to be high-minded and proud. In the past few years, I have not killed as many animals as I did when I was a little younger. God has helped me realize that there is not one material thing I will take with me when I die. If that is the case, then why do we look so much to material riches for happiness?
Happiness is not found in the riches of the world; it is found in obedience to God.
Do the riches of this world have you? Has it caused you to trust in things that will one day perish? Has it caused you to be high-minded? This very chapter of the Bible shows us that the riches of the world will cause great sorrow in our lives if we don’t use them for God’s glory. “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (I Timothy 6:10)
If God spoke to you today, are you available? Money is not the root of all evil. It’s the love of money, according to what God says. It doesn’t matter how big or how little your assets are. If you have Jesus Christ, you have all you need. Take a look at everything you have in your possession today and lay it next to the Word of God. How might you answer this question: Are you “rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”?
Remember again verse 17: “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;” Are you available for God to use you today? What if God directs your heart to do something for someone today? Will you say yes to the Holy Spirit? Will you say yes, Lord, to whatever you want? Just remember, “…the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.” Gobble, gobble!!
Memory Verse
I Timothy 6:17
“Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;”
