One thing about turkey season is the season starts before the season starts. What I mean is, sometimes weeks before hunters are allowed to hunt, the gobblers are already mating the hens. The action is fast before hunters have any opportunity to tag a bird. All we can do is watch. But the watching is good. Right now is a great time to peruse your hunting area to look for that familiar strut and gobble that fires us up. There’s nothing like watching this song and dance. And it’s even more electrifying when it’s happening just in front of our gun barrel. But again, I’ll have to wait another couple of weeks in my area. It will be excruciating but will serve to make opening day even more exciting. Until then, I’ll have to remain on the sidelines, getting ready for my opportunity.
Sidelines are the real headlines in my life. I spend most of my time each week just getting ready for a brief moment of headlines. Writing this article is just one example. I spend a lot more time in a small office, behind a desk, in front of a computer, on the sidelines, just getting ready for a short moment of headlines each week in your inbox or publication. When I speak, I spend a lot more time on the sidelines, wrestling with a subject, than I do with my 30-minute presentation. But you do the same thing. Whether you are a stay-at-home mother or some other professional, most of what you do or are involved with, involves getting things ready for some kind of finished product. It’s the sidelines that give you a moment of headlines. But those who are the best at the headlines are those who make sure they are prepared when they are on the sidelines. In sports terms, the backup quarterback needs to expect his number to be called on any given play. One never knows when it’s his day to make the headlines. In spiritual terms, God never creates an individual just for the sidelines. He always plans moments where he calls each of us to quit watching because the season – our season – has started. Let’s be ready. How you ask? By simply being aware of what’s going on around us and realizing as God’s child, we are equipped for the position.
Gary Miller
gary@outdoortruths.org