A Year In The Life ...

Montana Reflections

2006-12-05T18:24:00.000-08:00

William Johnson, Montana Church Planter and Northwest US OMN Field Rep reports on his season ...

As a hunter, even though we say that we just like to get out, it is always nice to fill a tag and take a picture of a successful hunt. I have to say this season, I did not have a lot of pictures to brag about. A small whitetail doe was meat in the freezer and that was it until two days before season closed when I took my first cow elk. I had spent most of my year chasing a moose, a once in a lifetime tag. I walked a lot of miles, saw a lot of beautiful country, and even saw 13 moose. That was incredible in itself. However, that bull tag remains in my dresser drawer.

So without something to brag of, how could this have been my best season? For the first time, my wife decided that she wanted to try hunting. So, with the purchase of some camo that fit her, a couple of trips to the shooting range, and the arrangement of babysitters, we were set. Season started out with a September moose hunt. We hiked all day in territory we had never been in and hunting something we had no idea how to hunt. Teresa enjoyed the beauty but quickly realized that hunting could be very tiring.

Opening day of waterfowl season was rather uneventful. With bluebird skies and no wind, the birds were just not decoying very well. The first shot of the season saw a single goose plummet from the air almost hitting Teresa in the head. After a large thud in front of her and a near miss of her head, there was no napping to take place in the blind that morning. A single duck fell later in the morning and the only other shots were at a group of geese that came by. We both emptied our guns to no avail, but as my hunting buddy tells me, there is no prayer unless there is steel in the air. Hopefully we can do that again when we have better weather.

Our next adventure was antelope hunting. I wanted her to get an antelope so bad. After searching and walking for hours, we finally found the antelope. Upon taking a guess of where a small group was heading, we quickly made our way to a fence line and moved quickly to get in place. Almost in position, a head appeared on the horizon. Getting close to the ground and being very still, 15 other heads came into view moving quickly in our direction. Soon, 16 antelope were standing 250 yards away just across the fence. For an eternity, or at least 30 minutes, we waiting motionless as they grazed along. Then a doe crossed the fence followed by the remainder of the group. In the middle was a really nice buck.

In order to get a closer shot, we watched the antelope graze another hour until all were out of sight or so we thought. Once again, we started our crawling to get over the hill and start our next stalk. After almost two intense hours, a wary doe made us and the hunt was quickly putting distance between us. The intensity, crawling, and motionlessness made Teresa realize just how tough an antelope hunt could be. What a great hunt, but it may be a while before Teresa decides to pursue the speed goat again.

I assured her that the tough hunts were over. Our next hunt was to be for deer. On our friends ranch just west of us, there are lots of whitetails. We had the ranch to ourselves the first two days of gun season. I assured Teresa that the only reason she would not leave with a deer that opening day is because she missed.

We sat patiently behind our natural bush blind for a while seeing deer at a distance only. Finally, a doe appeared. Being her first deer, a healthy doe would be a trophy. Thinking the doe was crossing near me, I had her to take a few steps to her right when the doe had her head down. Upon getting closer, she changed her direction and started right to the side Teresa would have been sitting. In order to get a shot, Teresa was going to have to move again. As the doe passed behind a bush, I told her to move back. Kneeling beside her, I turned to my right, and she turned to her left. Watching for the deer, she accidentally stepped on the gun sling, tripping herself up and starting to fall. Being the nearest thing to her, she reached to stabilize herself on me not a good idea. I toppled over, the gun barrel got stuck in the mud and Teresa stepped on it, and then fell on me. The deer of course bounced out in the field confused as could be. It stopped and Teresa said, "Can I shoot it?" Frantically trying to unplug the gun barrel with a stick, I resolved that it was useless. I had to unload the gun and blow the mud down the barrel. By this time the deer was long gone.

Looking back, this was very amusing. At the time, Teresa had already come to this conclusion as she sat with her head buried in her coat, trying to hide her laughter. I assured her that no deer would come while the bushes around were laughing.

After settling back in, more time passed without deer. Then straight ahead, just as if planned, I saw a deer come over the rise it was a buck - a good buck! Teresa got ready as the deer fed out in the field. I told her to be patient that he would come closer. A short time passed and the buck closed the distance to the fence line just 20 yards away. The sun was setting making this beautiful animal glow in the light. Stopping at the fence, I whispered for her to shoot. Silence filled the air. What is she waiting on? I thought to myself. It turned and moved to the left, still standing broadside. I was whispering, "Shoot-shoot-shoot."

I can't see him, she said. . I could not understand. The buck turned and walked down the fence line, coming closer to us. At that time I realized she could not see the wide open deer because her gun was shaking so badBUCK FEVER! I reached under her arm and took hold of the forearm on the gun.

He turned and moved back to the trail that comes under the fence. His head went down and then back up. I told her to wait. Down again and this time under the fencethis buck was going to walk right by us at less than 10 yards! I told her to wait until he stopped. Finally he stopped. "SHOOT!" I whispered at the top of my lungs. There was silence and then, BOOM! The 7mm-08 rang out and the buck loped over the fence and into the brush. Teresa was shaking so bad. I was sorry she missed it but what an exciting hunt.

After settling down, Teresa admitted that she had no idea that buck fever actually existed. Experience quickly made a believer. I assured her that this was only the first day of a five week season and we would try again.

We returned to the blind to see numerous other deer. A forkhorn popped out of the brush with three does. There's a buck, I said. In amazement, I watched the four deer trot by just yards away. It was at that moment that I knew she had been bit. Its not the big one - I want the big buck, Teresa said. It was like a drag car going from zero to 300 in a quarter of a mile. Teresa went from not knowing if she like hunting to horn hunting in one evening.

Disappointed but excited, we returned home with anticipation of the next day. Upon arriving at the ranch, we were greeted with 75+ deer in the hay fields. We borrowed our friend's truck and drove to the top of the field. There beside the hay bin was another doe. Teresa stalked it and got a shot but missed. She was getting frustrated. I told her it was okay, that was a hard shot offhand.

Then the tide turned. On our way to our stand, we had to drive across a dike near the river. To the left was a river bottom where whitetails loved to hang out. Seeing what I thought was a head in the bushes, I told Teresa to get ready. I circled the brush and surprised two deer. Through the brush and across the creek they shot. Watching Teresa, it seemed an eternity. Then I saw the smoke and heard the boom. I made my way to her and she exclaimed that she thought she hit one. After describing how it acted, I knew the carefulness she took to aim had paid off. After following the direction she told me it took for just a short ways, we found the pronounced blood trail and shortly after found the deer. What a shot! Her first deer!

As season progressed, so did the look for the buck. The last day Teresa would be able to hunt, we saw a nice buck and we know he will be better next year. But once again, Teresa showed her marksmanship when she filled her last tag with a big fat whitetail doe. That deer did not know what hit it. A pass through shot, text book in position through both lungs, that doe flopped a few times and that was itTeresa's second deer in her first year. I hunted several years before I killed two deer in one season so you can imagine how proud I am of her.

Now I told a detailed story of my hunting season, or at least part of it. Why was it the best? I got to do one thing that I have such a passion for with the one person I have such a passion for. My wife is a great hunter and a great partner. She has experienced the ups and downs, the joys and the frustrations of that great hobby that her husband is addicted to. I passed up some beautiful bucks to try to let her get a shot at one and I do not regret one missed opportunity. I had so much fun watching her have fun and experience something that she has never experienced. However, I think I have created a monster. Only extended season is now open and she is asking for more tags. Buck fever is still alive and she has it bad. I am looking forward to next year already. I know she is going to connect with the one that got away and after that, I know I will be home watching the kids while she is out chasing those horns. This has truly been my best season.

An Unmoveable Feast

2006-12-05T16:08:00.000-08:00

The other day I had a conversation that punched me in the gut some. I say it's an "unmoveable feast" because Hemmingway's book, A Moveable Feast, was basically about a time of life when things were as they should be, life was what it was meant to be. Now, things are different. For all of us.

This blog is basically about watching me go through life as we launch a new ministry in a full-time fashion. So, it's important to me to be very blunt and transparent with you on things I deal with. And I hope I've done that.

Back to my conversation. Basically, I "heard it through the grapevine" that this guy had said that Outdoor Ministry Network was "all about the money" - and that we were "unwilling to help him out."

Now that's surprising. For many reasons.

First, the guy in question asked me if our ministry could help out his cause. I told him that our demographic for what we do for churches probably wouldn't be able to help him in what he was attempting to do in a specific ministry niche. However, there were two specific ways I did think we could help him out.

One was to produce a video for him, which, by the way, he said he'd been thinking about.
Two was to give leadership coaching for his leaders, which he said he wanted.

Now comes the kicker ... I can't do it for free. And I think that is where the rub came. I am sure the guy didn't expect us to do it for free, but that's the feeling I had ... that we should donate.

Let me tell you something about the words "Free" and "Donation"

* Free is a myth. Somebody had to pay for it.
* Donations will kill you. You cannot stay alive if you always give out and never take in. Should you donate, yes, but you cannot stay alive if you donated every time someone asks you to.

Why do we charge for our ministry resources?

Well now ... it ain't rocket science is it?

If you can tell me how we can operate a ministry on the national level we do, and pay full-time staff, as well as feed my family ... without money ... then brotha', I'm all ears!!!

I'd love that ministry model ... but I can tell you right now it never has nor ever will exist.

(FYI: churches can't even do that)

I cannot for the life of me figure out why there are some people that cannot understand this. There is nothing wrong with making money when:

1 - your motives are pure
2 - the money you make goes to further the cause

See, OMN is a "for profit" venture.

Reason being ... we cannot qualify as a Non-Profit because we actually sell things: like dvds, hunting packages/retreats, turkey calls, caps, books, conferences, etc.

And if we tried to get a 501 status, we'd be highly suspect in the IRS' eyes.

So I guess I'm just frustrated. Frustrated because every now and then I hear this hint of "righteous" judgement coming from a few folks who somehow expect me to be Superman.

They are not bad people. Just short sighted.

Today's Generation vs. Men Like Dat and Little Joe

2006-11-11T11:45:00.000-08:00

I’m in Boston’s Logan Airport, listening to our President give a speech about Veterans. As I sit in Johnny Rocket’s, a place to get an awesome retro burger off the grill, I realize that this is the first Veteran’s Day without my grandfather, Josh Cruise, a.k.a, “Dat.” I gave him the handle “Dat-Dat” as a lady boy back in the 70’s. I guess I could not say Granddad. I don’t know, but it stuck.

Dat fought in WW2. He was an amazing man. He did not talk of the war much, but for some reason, he’d always tell me things when I’d ask. I guess a young boy doesn’t understand that many vets would just rather move on. Yet those stories fascinated me. Fighting in France. Walking on the sand of Normandy Beach. Staying in bombed out houses. Trading famous actress Marlene Dietrich his German Luger for a fifth of whiskey. Hearing him talk about guys named Little Joe, who carried his pillow in his backpack through the war. Staying in the cold snows of the German forest.

I have to wonder … does my generation have the guts those guys did? Honestly, I don’t think so. Overall, I don’t think my generation has the commitment to America that they did. I really don’t. I believe we’ve far too long listened to Martin Sheen, Susan Sarandon, Sean Penn, Bill Maher, and Bill Clinton instead of listening to Teddy Roosevelt, Oliver North, Ronald Regan, or Norman Schwartzkof. Why Oliver North? Wasn’t he the guy who lied to Congress? Yes. But he was literally taking the hit for the team. He let himself be the scapegoat … think about it … if what he did was so wrong, why did he receive so little punishment? (Because the government let him go lightly if he’d be the face to take the fall for Iran Contra.) What he did was honorable by taking the fall, not in lying, but in being loyal to go down with the ship.

The way I see it, most of America is like Sheryl Crow, who said, “I believe the best way to avoid war is to not have enemies.” Well Sheryl that’s great – sounds good. Feels good. If this were a college class on being politically correct … great gravy you’d get a 100 A+ with a smiley face. What happens, though, Sheryl, when people decide that whether or not you like it, they are just going to hate you and fly planes into your buildings, bomb your ships called the USS Kohl, and bomb your embassy buildings.

How do you negotiate with a group of people who say that the first point of the negotiating process is that you must die?!!

How do you treat that democratically? Sheryl’s a great singer, and a seemingly fine person, but God save us from this cancerous liberal mentality.

Honestly, I believe that most liberals today will stand by why our nation is just taken from us one piece at a time. Just standing there saying, “Please don’t be so mean. Let’s talk about this.” I wonder how successful Sean Penn’s movie career would be if he were to move to Iran and seek movie contracts there? He could, it’s a free country and he’s free to leave it. I wonder how well her songwriting and performing career would be if Natalie Maines and her other Dixie Chicks tried being country artists in Afghanistan?
I’m not speaking hate. I’m just asking some questions. I’m saying that the way we get to be free is through being the strongest people on earth who can preserve it. You keep your freedom through the threat of war.

Free nations do not attack free nations. That’s a historical truth. There has never been, in the history of the world, a democratically free country who has attacked another free country. Look it up and see for yourself. Yet to keep that freedom, we have to return to being men like my Dat and his fellas with him like Little Joe.

It’s those great men who gave us this freedom, and we’d better find more like them for our future because when we leave Iraq, there will be other 9/11 days in our future, and it’s then that we’ll have to look deep within to see if we have what it takes to preserve this country we call home.

Please Come To Boston ...

2006-11-10T19:39:00.000-08:00

I could be wrong. Maybe I’m just feeling a wee bit pessimistic (not my usual caliber fo’ sho’), yet I’ve had something on my heart for a while and tonight it seemed only to deepen.

I’m sitting in a Radisson in the greater Boston area. I’m here for a conference where a lot of pastors/church leaders gather annually. And tonight I heard Henry Blackaby speak. Now a lot of you probably don’t know who he is, but he’s an older fella who, around the late 80’s, was really used by God to ignite churches across the US with a study he did called “Experiencing God.”

More on Blackaby in a minute.

The thing I’ve had on my mind … I believe the church is just losing the war. Now this is no shocker, and it’s not as if we’ve all be “unaware” of it until now! I’ll bet you’re going, “Wow, Cruise, you’re some gifted prophet – to recognize the decline of the church, as if there were no evidence prior to today!”

We’ve all known this, but I believe God has been dealing with me some on a few of the reasons where all of this stuff got started. Not that I’m a historian, nor do I want to be, but there’s something bothering me which I believe has something to do with the state of the church today and how we got here.

If I were to bottom line it, I’d say that we’ve been far down the road of playing “religion” – and it’s a “learned habit.” And we’ve been taught how to do it by our elders; not necessarily senior citizens, but in general many who have come before us who led our churches over the past 40 years.

I’m not blaming all of them because I for one don’t like placing “blame” nor do I like to use sweeping generalizations. Yet the truth of the matter is that in every church I’ve ever served the many of the people who were the “oldest” in the faith were the least spiritually mature. Now please don’t get me wrong. I’ve had many of older people, many in the WW2 generation, who’ve been great mentors to me. Shared much wisdom, and some great attitudes they possessed. Even still, I kid you not when I say that every single pastor I know has a difficult time getting his older crowd to embrace anything that doesn’t look, feel, taste, smell, and remind them of 1955. Every single pastor I know or have ever known does not enjoy dealing with his older crowd. Yet they won’t say it publicly. Because they fear the backlash.

I had one fella, who is 67 years old, tell me that our older folks have been the lifeblood of the church financially, and through holding much of the power in mainline churches, the direction of the church in general has been steered by them. Therefore, they never passed the torch to the younger crowd. Thus, we now have generations of people who have no real leadership maturity in the body. Wanting to preserve a way of life they once held dear, they did what church growth gurus often call, “Circle The Wagon.” That is, when threatened by the enemy (pop culture or a changing culture), you circle the wagon (the church) and keep the enemy out until they either quit bothering you (ain’t gonna happen) or until they come around to your way of thinking (really ain’t gonna happen because they are lost!).

Tonight Henry Blackaby said that the reason we can’t see a movement of God in our churches is because God’s people won’t repent, and they have “settled for being religious.” To the point that “we can’t even recognize when God is moving anymore.”

I want to make something clear: I realize that some folks will see me as picking on “old people.” If they do, that’s there right to be wrong! I’m not doing that in any way. I’m simply saying that at some point, we’ve got to recognize that the church can no longer try to sell nostalgia as genuine worship.

America isn’t coming back to God. Read the last book, it’s pretty clear!

What I’m dealing with is the fact that I believe the state of the American church today is basically like that of the children of Israel in Numbers 11-13. The older generations had to die out before any of the new could experience the promise. And at some point those of us in the “next generation” are going to have to say, “enough already … we are not afraid of the giants in that land. We want the best of what God has promised.”

Reggie McNeal in his book “The Present Future” prophetically said that today’s church has basically become a spiritual club where the club members (Christians) pay membership dues (tithes) and expect member services (ministries that serve ourselves).

If you treat yourself honestly, you’ll agree that the vast majority of what we do in the church today is self-serving. I had that revelation at the last church I pastored. I looked hard at where our budget money was going … and it was, for the most part, going to feed ministries that served those already saved. We may give money to missions, but our daily ministry life is, for the most part, serving our own needs. Not that we don’t want the outsiders to come in, but we’re expecting them to value what we value, like what we like, sing what we sing, and think what we think. Then, they can be in the club, too.

So here I am at the Radisson solving all the church’s problems. I know. Yet still I’m bothered by the fact that we’ve so easily admitted that culture has left us, when the hard reality is that we left it. So we cry out to God to do something about it. While we sit, stand, sing, listen, give, and pray. Then go home as if He’s just not ready to move yet. So we move on with our Sundays. Right over to lunch after church, only to face another week, and then do it all again.

At some point, today’s young leaders are going to have to choose to live life differently. Perhaps best said last night by Henry Blackaby that we must choose “to have a qualitatively different relationship with Christ Jesus.”

John Denver Was Right

2006-11-04T05:38:00.000-08:00

I've always loved John Denver. Never forget that day the news was showing his downed plane in the Pacific. One of my favorite songs was "Back Home Again."

"Hey it's good to be back home again. Sometimes this old farm feels like a long lost friend."

My travel life is not too bad, but it comes in spurts, and this fall is one of the big spurts. It's tough to be away. And it makes me sit in awe at how some men can be totally uninterested in being a dad when their kids are dying for face time. I just don't get that. You have to pull a major plug to disconnect from your kids. I just can't imagine it.

My dad was great at investing in me. I guess you often parent the way you were parented, and he was, thank God, a super example in that area.

My son just came up and said, "lap." He wants up here. He just got through eating "toast." His life is consumed in one word sentences. "Milk" ... "Eat" ... "Boon" (balloon) ... "Shide" (outside). It's a genuis concept, really. I think I should employ it more. Say one word, and people give you exactly what you want. Makes you think about our society's obsession with communication and marketing doesn't it? We say too much and achieve so little. Like ads on the radio ... every single one of them drive me nuts. They are unbelievably painful to the mind and ears.

One word sentences ... get what you want. Yep, that's where I'm headed. Ah, who am I kidding. I can't even think in one word sentences. Maybe Cole can learn that if you can't be bright, be brief!

Self-less In A Selfish World

2006-10-31T16:55:00.000-08:00

Oklahoma Buck Meets The Knight Disc Revolution

2006-10-31T12:35:00.000-08:00

135 Class Oklahoma 9 Pointer

Amarillo By Morning

2006-10-28T12:48:00.000-07:00

Live From 10,000 Feet - Big Elk Down

2006-10-27T07:02:00.000-07:00

High Country Elk Report

2006-10-25T07:14:00.001-07:00

Colorado Road Trip

2006-10-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

Mike Fell Runnin' Late For The Hunt

2006-10-18T03:02:00.000-07:00

2006-10-18T02:50:00.000-07:00

Live On The Air

2006-10-11T02:11:00.000-07:00

Bringing It From The Bluegrass State

2006-10-10T02:23:00.000-07:00

Don Pierson Slingin' Some Arrows

2006-10-09T02:24:00.000-07:00

Road Trippin' Michigan

2006-10-08T03:13:00.000-07:00

Choosing An Outfitter

2006-10-03T06:05:00.000-07:00

We get asked from time to time about outfitter referrals, outfitted trips, and things of the like. I've hired a few outfitters over the last few years, and I thought I'd share with you some insights I've learned from each experience.

Now I know that many of you read and never post on this blog, but your thoughts would be valued for sure, because we've all had different experiences.

So here's some of my thoughts if you ever want a guided trip:

1 - The Golden Rule: All Outfitters Are Not Created Equal

Each guide and the outfitter he works for are unique people, and each operation has a different philosophy. Just know this going in.

2 - It's up to you to ask the questions. And you better ask a ton of them.

I'd really suggest making a long list of questions, as specific as you can, to go over with your outfitter. If they seem put out, or bothered by your inquisition, then move to another group.

Remember ... you are hiring them. They work for you during this outing. They are by no means slave labor or to be treated as hirlings. Yet if they can't handle some questions on the front end, then they are not going to work for you in the end. If they don't understand that simple concept, then you don't want them anyway.

3 - Really think through what your goal is and what you are really after from the experience.

Take fishing for instance. If you are wanting a fun day on the river catching fish, then that's one thing. If you are wanting a hard core, big fish experience, that's another. Your guide & outfitter needs to know this! It makes a massive difference in how they go about the day.

Trophy trout fishing and a good day of trout fishing are not the same thing. And the same goes with hunting. You have to be clear with you outfitter as to what you are after.

When it comes to fishing, I am a devoted believer in getting a guide if you are on new waters in a new state. A half day may cost you $250, but man, if that puts you in fish for the next 3 days, it's a no brainer for me. "Local knowledge" is EVERYTHING when it comes to fishing.

4 - Ask your outfitter to define the word "success."

Any good outfitter will be very specific on what he calls a "successful hunt." A classy outfitter will tell you that he defines success as "I got my client within bow range of a legal animal." What happens after that he has no control over.

Many good outfitters will break it down for you.

95% of my clients were within bow range of a legal animal
75% of my clients took a shot
70% of my clients killed the animal

Randy & Jeannie Horne of Bar H Outfitters in Colorado do a super job of this. And they are amazing outfitters in general. They want you to have all the knowledge possible on the front end.

Which leads me to another thing: a good outfitter doesn't want you to have surprises when you walk into camp. Like when arriving you find out that you were supposed to bring a sleeping bag! Now you have no bedding. It's going to be a long week!

5 - Ask for recent pictures

A quality oufitter will have pictures every single year from their hunts. If they don't, move on.

6 - How experienced are his guides.

The outfitter always has a few guides in training. You don't want this fella. He may be a good hunter, but he's not guided much. Ask about the guide you are going with. If the outfitter tells you he has not assigned a guide to you yet, tell him to call you back when he makes his decision, and then you will make yours!

Remember ... you drive the ship. It doesn't give you the right to be a jerk or overly demanding. You do have every right to be in control of your decision, however.

7 - Never. And I mean never, negotiate with an outfitter.

If you ask for a "special deal" that's what you'll get. A special deal. Most likely you'll get a guide in training who has limited experience, and in some cases, you simply won't get the best he has to offer. Why? Because you asked for it!

When I talk with an oufitter, I ususally discuss special options for my camera man. But not for me. I want to pay the full price, and then ask my outfitter if I do tag out, what would it cost my camera man to hunt.

Which brings up the point ... what does your "package" include. You'd better know on the front end!!!

Is there a trophy fee? (fee for actually killing an animal)
Is my tag included?
Does this cover processing the meat?

* You can almost always factor in the truth that your package does not cover a tip for your guide. I'd say be sure to tip your guide $200 or more, regardless of whether or not you drag something out of the woods.

A fishing guide can live with a $50 tip. Big game guides do more because of the nature of the trip.

8 - Will the outfitter himself be in camp?

Lots of times they are not. Sometimes they are. I can tell you this from personal experience: when the boss is around, things are different! It's just like your office ... people shape up when the boss is around. Guide are no different.

9 - Are there assigned areas for each hunter?

Recently I was on an elk hunt where we had a billion acres to hunt, with elk sign all over the place, and during a hunt on day 2, all 3 guides and their hunters were in the canyon I had been hunting (and seeing elk in). This is absolutely uncalled for, and totally unprofessional. My guide had been scouting for us, on his own dime, for months. When the hunt came, the others rode in to town on his hard work. Honestly, I believe this is what cost me a shot at a bull. I saw 5 bulls in the canyon I was going to hunt the night before the season opener. By day 2, we were not seeing them anymore. They'd been far too pushed.

I don't believe that hunters should never move from an area. If the animals have moved out, then you need freedom to move, too. However, there should be some clarity between the guides as to how this should play out.

10 - Will you be sharing a guide with other hunters.

Most hunting outfitters will have a 2:1 ratio. 1 guide per 2 hunters. If it's you and your buddy, then you've got to decide who the shooter is. If you are by yourself, then I'd highly suggest you offer the outfitter more money for a 1:1. I'd be more than willing to pay an extra $300 on a trip where I'm already spending $3500 if it means I am guaranteed the spot of the "shooter" when game time comes around.

11 - Always remember that it's hunting, not killing.

If you come back with an empty tag, remember, that's life! It just happened to me on a big elk hunt where I had high expectations.

I was disappointed in some of my experience, but there were some good things about the hunt that I did enjoy.

Guides and outfitters are not superman. Yet they get blamed if the trip doesn't turn out perfect. It's fishing, not catching. Hunting, not killing.

And the last thing I'd say is ... go for the total experience and you'll love it all. If you are wanting to come home with a kill, then you'll be paying big $$$$ for a high fenced hunt. That's about the only way to insure a kill. And then I have to ask ... is that even allowed to be called "hunting" anyway?

Go for the whole experience, and you'll have a good time.

Making New Friends

2006-09-29T17:24:00.000-07:00

Our 2nd Annual Glorieta Fly Fishing Adventure has been a huge success. Our conference saw a huge swell in attendance, basically doubling in size to something around 60. It's been great to hear how each man heard about the event. Some read articles, some word of mouth, and many guys came back from year one. From all over the USA they've come to hook a trout, and sink deep into the Word.

The conference is one in our line of Adventue Trips, and guys seem to really love them. We deal with issues men face each night when we do the bible study.

Today was my last day to slay the trout. Not much slaying but did catch a few. I thought I was going to have to whup a man today on the stream. He wasn't in our group. He was just a local who was fishing and had some pathetic stream etiquette. Came up and fished about 20 yards from me. Had he not left quickly, I'd have had to explain to him that there are miles of water here pal!

Thinking on it, I realized that most men just don't have good dads that can teach them how to be a man. I see it all the time. Not just in fishing. Things like the fact that many young men don't open the door for a lady. When they shake your hand, they mumble their name, and give a soft shake.

My dad taught me to shake a man's hand with a firm, yet not hard shake. Look him in the eye, and tell him your whole name.

Little things like that are what give a man what we call "class."

Honestly, class is something I see missing so badly in today's younger men; yet, you really can't fully blame them, because class is something that is taught. Not acquired.

So that's my beef on the man on today's stream. He needed come class. And I was about to school him!!!!

I'm so ready to go home and see my wife and son. Leave out tomorrow morning.

It's been fun, but I'm outta here!

Glorieta Adventure Begins

2006-09-24T15:42:00.000-07:00

From Bulls To Brown Trout

2006-09-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

Snowed Out

2006-09-21T19:15:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting in a hotel in Chama, New Mexico. The "Branding Iron Inn" - how 'bout that??? Sounds all out cowboy don't it?

Why am I not in elk camp??? Because we got a ton of snow that forced us out of there - and dude - it's mid-September!! I cannot believe it. We didn't even get to hunt today.

Our guide, the great Patrick Archuletta, let us sleep in his RV last night. Praise Jesus ... because our sleeping bags and entire outfitter tent was soaked from all the heavy snow pack on the tent roof. We'd have risked hypothermia. Seriously. You can't sleep in wet sleeping bags in 18 degree weather with 50 mph winds, and expect to do well!

Patrick is a cool guy. Knows the Lord. He's a great elk guide. Hard core. He's a copper headed Mexican who can flat "whup a man" if he needs to!!! Even though we've discussed it all week, I don't think he could take me in a brawl, because he knows that when the chips are down, I'll cut a man. I will. I'll cut a man and sleep well when I get home. We've had a ton of fun together. And he's gone above and beyond what most guides would ever do for a hunter.

Get this ... no joke either ... we've walked a total of 60 miles the first 5 days of hunting. Now think it through: that's 60 miles in the high country of the New Mexico Rockies, Sangre De Christo Mountains, which stands for "blood of Christ." With packs, camera gear, bows, food, clothing on our backs. Hey man, that's gettin' it done!

And bro, I've not fallen over dead yet!! Hey, seriously, I've been working my hindquarters off to get in shape for this hunt, and it's worked. Even the other guides can't believe we've put in that much foot traffic.

Tomorrow I've got one more hunt left. Man, I really, really want to kill a bull. And I want my buddy David Moss to kill one, too. So I'll be cookin' up some different prayer signals tonight for sure.

This is a picture of a bull that Kevin Cordell, a Oklahoman planted in Texas, shot but didn't kill. Another fella took this brute 4 days later in the same canyon ... at least Kevin got to sling an arrow!

High Country Ups & Downs

2006-09-20T11:26:00.000-07:00

Me & my grandfather, Josh "Dat" Cruise
around 1977 at our hunting cabin in
the Tennessee mountains.

Dat - you'll forever be in my heart with each
step I take in the chase. I miss you.

Dead Tired But Well Fed In New Mexico

2006-09-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

We finally got into New Mexico around 7am. 18 solid hours without stopping baby!! Here's a picture of Amarillo when nobody's awake!

YEAH DAWG! There's a lot of things I'm not good at, but one thing is for sure ... I ain't afriad of no road trip! Hey, why stop along the way and rest??? You can rest when you get there.

And dude did we get there. I drove the first 11 hours or so. Then I handed over the control panel to D. Moss. Listen here son, when you employ the Moss School of Driving, you can make things happen. Let's just say that Moss and Jerry Reed (from Smokey and the Bandit) share the same DNA coding ... west bound and down, rollin' up and truckin', we gonna do what they say can't be done!

We ate at Thomasitas, in downtown Santa Fe. I've eaten there a bunch. It's a local haunt, and the cool thing is that the building goes back like 110 years, back to when the resturant was a train depot for the Santa Fe railway. Check it out if you're in Santa Fe. Get the Green Chile Enchilada.

I'll be posting when I can via our audio blogger ... that is ... when we can get cell reception!

David Moss In Red Bull Detox

2006-09-13T22:49:00.000-07:00

Arkansas Through A Windshield

2006-09-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

Carl Weatherford with his dawg
"Tracker." Carl is our Arkansas Field Rep.

On The Road Again

2006-09-13T10:26:00.000-07:00

It's On Now

2006-09-02T08:36:00.000-07:00

Today we journey out for our first whitetail hunt of the season. Kentucky opens crazy early on their bow season. I'm running the camera for our Kentucky Field Rep, Jason Brooks.

He's been seeing a hefty bluegrass 10 pointer, so we'll see if we can't stick him a Carbon Express/Muzzy combination and bring down some pain!

Be sure to blog in with us and tell us what you are seeing in your neck of the woods. It can be really helpful for good info on what the deer are doing.

Only 11 days until we leave to chase big New Mexico bulls.

Watch Out World ... Here We Come

2006-08-24T13:06:00.000-07:00

This week we had our first ever National Field Rep Fellowship. And no, there was no fried chicken at this "fellowship" - it was all about our doing the best we can to build the greatest outdoor ministry resource network in the history of creation.

I've got some amazing guys that are so creative. We had fellas show up from Tennessee, Montana, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Indiana. I was so amazed to see our fellas drive hard to get our resources to the churches ... especially the men in those churces who need a ministry outlet.

I'm only 20 days from taking my Mathews Switchback and ramming an arrow dead nuts into a big bull elk in New Mexico. Man, I can't wait. I've been running and training for months for this high altitude hunt. Today I walked for 45 minutes with my pack weighed down with lots of sandbags. One word: brutal! Got to get ready though - at any cost.

What's Your Season Like?

2006-07-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

Don't know about any of you guys, but I'm getting that antler itch! Been shooting my Mathews, and it's just making it worse!

So what's your season looking like? As far as trips go, I'm going to New Mexico for an archery elk hunt during the rut. Can't wait! I am also hunting Oklahoma for some big whitetails, and hopefully getting up to Indiana as well.

Any trips you have planned? Seeing any good bucks around your farms?

River Report

2006-07-19T00:22:00.000-07:00

Big Blackfoot River ... Time To Get My Fish On!

2006-07-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

The world famous Blackfoot River near Missoula, Montana

Me & Dad

2006-07-15T05:26:00.000-07:00

Just yesterday I had a conversation with yet another friend who told me he never really had that great of a realtionship with his dad.

It's amazing. The longer I live the more I find that the relationship I have with my dad is so unique in the grand picture of life. One of my friends is a fella who actually started Promise Keepers - Dave Wardell. Dave is the co-founder, along with Coach McCartney. Dave told me that if a guy has a really close relationship with his father, it puts him in about the top 3% of men in the nation.

I know it is kind of up close and personal, but I'd love to see what some of you guys have to say about this issue. What's it been like for you?

Most importantly, if you are in the majority of the crowd who had a strained or somewhat disconnected relationship with your dad, what are you specifically doing to change that life pattern with your kids?

Hey - headed to Montana with Dad tomorrow to film "Polarized: Looking At Life From God's Perspective." It's a dvd-based study using fly fishing. It will be out sometime later this year.

And you heard it here first! Always a good reason to check the blog!

I'll be AUDIO blogin' this week keeping you posted on what's happening with the filming and what the action is like on the blue ribbon streams of the Big Blackfoot, the Bitterroot, the Clark Fork, and the St. Regis.

Professor Cruise ... If My High School Teachers Could See Me Now!

2006-07-11T06:06:00.000-07:00

I Won The Lottery

2006-07-02T20:06:00.000-07:00

I've Never Really Known Panic ... Until Today

2006-06-26T17:12:00.000-07:00

For about the past 3 months, I've had an occasional call or email from people needing ministry help with the outdoors. They've told me that they've been sending me email but have had no response.

Well, today, I found out the problem. One of our email addresses, our main contact point, all of a sudden quit forwarding email to me. Which meant that today I discoverd that I have 129 emails, only 6 were spam, of which people were needing our training material or other resources. Some of these emails date back to late February.

I freaked out.

Just knowing that people were trying to reach us and probably got the idea we were snubbing them makes me fight severe depression.

Our former web hosting company was bought out, and then internal problems began. Which obviously affected our email system. So it looks as if I have a nice, long night of responding to these nice and patient folks.

If that be you ... please give me grace!! I have never seen anything like this, and though I don't use cuss words, I am wanting to right now!!!

The Women Behind Us

2006-06-18T01:57:00.000-07:00

The old cliche heralds, "behind every good man is a good woman."

Well, not always. As a pastor I watched a few older men over the years continue to grow in Christ and be productive in spite of a wife that was nothing more than a truckload of constant negativity. Yet it's true in most cases that most men who are successful in the game of life have a great woman behind them. And it's true in my case.

My wife Michelle has been put through a lot this past year. In fact, in the past 3 years. Outdoor Ministry Network was never in our thoughts when we married. Even when we launched it over 3 years ago, the movement going national was never in our expectations or on our radar. Even more, for me to leave pastoral ministry to operate this ministry full-time wasn't considered as well. Yet all of that happened, and she's just been there. All the way.

In fact, we had a long talk around the month of February about this year's turkey season coming in April. It was crucial that we captured as much footage as we could get for our ministry DVDs. I told Michelle that I'd have to be hunting probably 5 days week, but that I'd be home around normal hours. Think about that. Gone before daylight, often home by 5pm, but in the woods all day. For 50 solid days, other than Saturday and Sunday. And she never blinked. Got a little worn out, but she was solid. Fellas ... that's just God ain't it?

I wanted to so something in this blog that might all of us testostrone -filled junkies. Let's talk about how we can show our wives that we are thankful they support our addictions with the outdoors. Hunting, fishing, golf, riding Harleys, camping ... whatever your bag. My experience is that men, myself definitely included, can't get enough.

I've never needed crack. I have camo. And often, I don't know when to stop the pursuit.

One of my close confidants is a fella named Steve Chapman. He wrote "A Look at Life from a Deer Stand." You'll even see this book in airports. It's had more readers than you can imagine. Steve always says, "Earn your time outdoors." That is, don't be sitting in a tree stand knowing that she's resenting you being there. One day we were hunting and Steve had to turn on his cell and call Annie over an issue about their ministry of marriage seminars. Sitting right next to him I heard her say as she was hanging up, "Have fun." As he hung up, Steve said that those words are always an indicator that he's doing it right - when she can endorse the hunt.

So: would you mind sharing some of the secrets you use to keep mama happy with you during thsoe seasons of life when you are chasing your favorite outdoor obsession???

Blink and It's Over + One Big Announcement

2006-06-16T01:53:00.000-07:00

Bob Seger, one of my all-time favorite musicians, has a line in his famous song, "Night Moves" where he says, "Twenty years now, where'd they go? Twenty years, I don't know. I sit and I wonder some times, where they've gone."

I can't say much for 20 years, but for the last four weeks, I'd say, "Where'd they go?"

This blog is to be a "year in my life" so this is what I've done in the last two weeks: sat on a beach in Jekyll Island, GA, for the first vacation we've taken in 2 years. Much needed, and I absolutely did not even think of you!!!

This past week we've had some God sized things happen. We've had a super-bowl type meeting this past Tuesday. I wanted to get some of my close friends in our network together in one room. So you take people from LifeWay, BassPro, the Tennessee Baptist Convention, a few pastors ... and toss in one celebrity ... and what you've got buddy is one heck of a power group to listen to. And that's what I did. Listen.

My goal was to ask them: what can we do to take what God has done and move it ahead. It was honestly incredible. I've never been in a meeting with people like that who were so ready to be used of God through OMN.

The Big Announcement:

We've been thinking about putting together something really cool. What took us to a national level was our first DVD, "Building An Outdoor Ministry."

How about if we could offer not just an Outdoor Ministry training DVD for churches, but instead, a full-on "starter kit." Complete with 2 volumes (4 hours) of outdoor ministry training, a few hunts, and a killer filed manual upgrade. So here's what is on the horizon right now: we are currently filming Outdoor Ministry Leadership Volume 2. And it's all from actual players ... people who are doing it right now. Ministry in the real world, in real time.

I'm setting up film shoots like crazy over the next few weeks so that we can have this joker ready by fall.

It's full of real guys, just like you, some who are pastors, many who aren't. And we're covering "next level" kind of stuff like budgeting, expo events, hunter's ed classes, small groups, hosting various types of events, church hunting lease liability, and creative events on small budgets ... just to name a few.

Dude: it's going to be so completely cool. Stay with our website to see more.

And you heard it here first!

Hey - since we're literally filming Vol. 2, are there any topics you'd like us to consider that might make it to the DVD???? Any issues on the ministry front you'd like to know more about?

Kill It & Grill It: How Does God Feel About It?

2006-05-25T12:28:00.000-07:00

Recently I had an email from a fella named David Caddell in KY. He's an avid outdoorsman, and we got to talking about how to respond to people who are anti-hunting.

So I wanted your insights. Let's don't hammer the "anti" people for being stupid, elitists, etc. No time for that. Let's talk about the theological issues. None of us here are professional theologians anyway. So let's talk about it in real world ways.

What kind of justification do you think there is, from a Biblical perpsective, on the allowance of hunting and fishing?

Passion Or Obession

2006-05-18T05:16:00.000-07:00

Mossy Oak has long since had a marketing slogan ... it's not a passion, it's an obsession.

For those of you who read this blog and are of the non-outdoor type (we pray for your salvation), Mossy Oak is one of the greatest camo companies ever.

Today I've just started a new read. A John Piper book, "When I don't desire God." It's a book about fighting for joy; the struggle for it, all that good stuff. I've not read a lot of Piper, but I am fixed on this topic and have been for years.

A verse that has meant much to me over the last 5 or so years comes from John's gospel. He recorded Jesus saying, "The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come to give you life." (10:10)

For so long I believe Christians have been told that pursuit of joy is selfish. So I've always had this guilt from enjoying anything too much. Like it was as if I was enjoying "the world" too much. Which I've always hated that phrase anyway ... the world. Pretty much every person I've ever been around who was constantly using that phrase didn't live on the same planet I did. They lived in some remote spiritual village in their mind where they were just, quite simply, better and more holy than anyone else. I know what they mean by "the world" and I agree that we should not find our eternal hopes in it. Agreed.

Yet I must say that I believe God put things on this earth and in this "world" to be enjoyed. Like steak. Like a good SunDrop on a hot day. Or sex (with your wife). Like my son's "tough face" whereby he shows me how tough he really is. Like fishing. Like shooting a big bull elk while standing at 12,000 feet seeing vistas never before encountered. We could go on for hours.

See I believe that God is not offended if we get happy. I believe He's offended because we aren't happy enough.

Nietzsche, that great atheistic philosopher, once said that he would have given more thought to Christianity, yet he never met anyone at his father's church who seemed to be happy.

So where is all this random stuff headed? Let me tie it together.

I believe that Jesus wants to give us joy, and He's the only One who can do it. And yet I don't think that having a passionate obsession with the outdoors, or car racing, or wood work, or riding Harleys, is bad or wrong. I believe it's when we look to those things to bring us joy or as a substitute to our spiritual nourishment ... that's when it's an obsession worth reframing.

Several years ago God liberated me from my guilt of wondering if I loved hunting and fishing too much. So He told me to put a Kingdom agenda on it ... and the rest is ...

'Round The Table

2006-05-15T15:08:00.000-07:00

Recently I received an "anonymous" post to one of our blogs. I thought it raised some interesting issues. Thought I'd paste it here so that it doesn't get buried, and thus keep the conversation going.

Anonymous said:

Jason, I'm a boomer pastor who is with Paul in bottom lining these issues under as long as Christ is preached I will rejoice; however, outdoor ministry is a limited, niche market and, frankly, is old hat. Wild game suppers, bass pro ministry guys, hunters, you-name-it, have been out there for a generation now. It appears to me, perhaps wrongly, that after a few personal experiences with such ministries that such are mainly a hobbies under the rubrick of ministry. No offense...but I'd be interested in your dissuading me of that opinion.

Well, give us your thoughts.

I've already posted mine.

Next Level Churches

2006-05-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

Man the response lately has been super. I'm actually glad to get in the mix now. Our turkey season just ended. God gave us above and beyond what we anticipated.

We had a total of something like 22 toms we captured on film; by that I mean, there were basically 18 kills and 4 misses. It was super. Enough to make some great footage for our ministry DVDs. And man do we have a ton of production work to do now!

So back on ministry issues for men.

When I speak of Next Level Churches, what I'm talking about is churches that are looking outside the radar. See, my beef with most churches, regardless of denomination, is that they are bound by the framework of yesteryear. I recently told a pastor that I have long been frustrated with the lack of creativity within the church. I don't think it's because all the creative people are outside God's family. It's just the opposite. When the Holy Spirit takes up residence in a believer's life, dude, that's when a person's real creative potential is finally unleashed. Creativity at its best is empowered by God Himself.

No. My feeling is that the creative people within the church are, in southern english, "skeerd." Afraid. Bound by decades of macabe preaching that God is OFFENDED by the world's ways.

Believe me when I say that more often than I care to recall I've had men who tell me they take flak for "using the world's ways to reach people." (a reference to using the outdoors to do ministry).

Recently I had a pastor friend of mine tell me that one of his church members, a woman, say to him, "There is no way you can turn a turkey hunt into a ministry opportunity." I suppose that she also feels that there is no way you can turn a basketball game into a salvation experience. Thank God Caz McCaslin, founder of Upward, never met her when he was pondering God's call to the greatest sports ministry ever founded. Thousands of kids have been saved for eternity through Upward.

I believe you should steer clear of those kind of folks. And I also believe that you should steer clear of those kind of churches. Seriously. You and I only have so many days on this planet. I cannot, for the life of me, believe that it would be God's will for your life that you waste time in a church that is, by intention, waiting for 1951 to come back around. I'm not saying this to be harsh. I'm saying it because if you want to reach men for Christ, you are going to have to invent your own road map. Because there is no road.

The one thing Outdoor Ministry Network has taught me is that God honors those who pioneer for Kingdom causes.

Bound. Tied up. Redeemed people with unredeemed imaginations. That's what's hurting us. And yet that's not you. Because you are in this conversation.

What do you think?

2006-05-10T19:37:00.000-07:00

Many of you responded to my last post about Men: The Fogotten Audience.

Obviously, I'm passionate about that subject. And I am going to be curious as to what you guys are actually going to "do" about what we are "talking" about!

I think Jay, who responded to the last post, has a good point. Discipleship is experienced as much as it is taught. It made me think: Jesus said, "Come follow Me." Those guys were not in a class room. Yes, there were taught as students, but they walked with Jesus for 3 years. They had their discipleship put to immediate use in how it came to play out in their daily lives. They experienced ministry, not just learned about it.

Let me run this past you: at Outdoor Ministry Network, we are in the process of a new project. Many men who do go to church are not connected in a small group bible study. They just attend church. And it's not an issue where they don't love God as much as they should! I honestly believe they don't see that a "Sunday School" is going to add value to their lives. Whether we like that or not, that's the deal. And we'd better respond with that knowledge in mind.

So our concept is that we are going to take the hunts we are filming, as well as fishing segments, and turn them into small group bible study material. Basically, you'd watch a hunt or a fishing segment, and it would lead you into a bible study. There's no "homework." You watch the segment on DVD, and then your group interacts with the DVD that takes you beyond a hunt or fishing moment and into spiritual development.

What we want to do is encourage churches who really do want to reach outdoorsmen to go the extra mile. Have a bible study room that has the look and feel of an outdoorsmen. Make church a place where a guy is challenged, and yet a place that speaks his language.

What do you think?

Men: The Forgotten Audience

2006-05-08T15:43:00.000-07:00

So I really want to know your thoughts here. And should you read this blog, and not respond, I'm internalizing a spiritual virus for your computer that will go out automatically!!!

I do actually want to know you feelings on this issue:

Every single day, or there about, I get a phone call or email from somewhere in the nation from people wanting to reach men. And that cranks my tractor. Yet I have some serious questions, and I want your thoughts.

For years I've heard preachers rant and rave that the "men" should be stepping up. Serving. Doing God's work. Loving Jesus. Being an example. All that stuff. I agree.

I'm not going to preach here. I'm just stating some observations from years of church service. Some of these were mistakes I actually made, so this isn't complaining as much as it is "educated confession."

When I look around at the church, here's what I see:

1 - Churches are decorated for women and by women. Nothing appeals to the man's eye when he walks in the door

2 - Worship services are built around words like, "have an imtimate relationship with Jesus." Now I'm not playing word games here, but come on, if that is a stretch for me, a seminary educated fella, then how does that translate to Mack's ears who works in construction? Seriously. Think about it.

3 - When preachers talk about "areas where you can serve God" - it usually has to do with either teaching a bible study, or working in the nursery. Now I'm an author. I talk with publishers all the time. We all know that men aren't huge readers. Which means that as a pastor, we're asking guys to commit to reading more (not gonna happen) or somehow gain the desire to change diapers. (really not gonna happen).

And then as preachers we'll scream that if they don't love those 2 things, they don't love God.

I think guys should help with nursery. I do. That's just part of being a servant. But it is NOT a call to ministry. That's a call to serve and help out.

So I think ministry has been narrowly defined and wrongly represented to men all together.

*** why is it that when I threw out the call for chainsaw relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina, I had men climbing the pews to get in on it?? They took vacation to do it. Hint. Hint.

4 - Churches want men there, but they won't lay down the coin to see it happen. If you want to reach men, you must spend the money. You must do things that speak of testostrone.

5 - We want to reach men, but we are not willing to do the things to make it happen. We want to reach them, but on our terms. Again, nursery, teaching sunday school, nursing home visitation, be a deacon. Etc.

We've got a serious epidemic on our hands with lack of male presence in today's churches. Promise Keepers and George Barna have told us that for years now.

In fact, Barna reports that when the man is a believer and in church, over 80% of the families of those men are rooted in a church as well.

When a man is not saved or marginally committed to church life, only 13% of those families are in a church.

Hint. Hint. Hint.

If you want to keep families rooted in Kingdom work, go after the man! Keep his fire hot. Make him feel relevant, needed, challenged, accepted; and give him things that speak his language.

Why is it that we all will agree that men are the missing demographic in most churches, and yet all we do is complain and condemn them over it????

So here's what I want to know:

what has your church done, or is honestly going to do, for men?

I'm not asking a loaded question. I really want to know your insights, failures, successes, etc.

Am I Dreamin' or What?

2006-05-06T19:04:00.000-07:00

Long time no blog. I know.

Imagine strapping on a pair of spikes, grabbing a piece of hand carved lumber from Louisville Slugger, and stepping to home plate to take batting practice at Yankee Stadium. That's what happened to me yesterday.

In this journey I have seen a dream come true. Yesterday I hunted with a man who is a legend; he's mentored me for years in turkey hunting and didn't even know it. David Hale. He's now become a great friend and encourager.

David is literally the Mickey Mantle of the hunting world. A man who's name in the industry has no rival. And even bettter, David is a fully devoted follower of Christ.

Several decades ago David Hale and a man named Harold Knight, two good ol' boys from Cadiz, KY, decided to start marketing game calls. Goose calls, turkey calls, all sorts of stuff. They basically pioneered the game call revolution. Knight & Hale Game Calls was born. Even to this day, their TV show, Knight & Hale's Ultimate Hunting, is seen by 225,000 actual viewers per week.

David and I have gotten to know one another over the last 2 years. And recently, we have partnered together for a really neat concept, again, of which I cannot tell you just yet. Even still, stepping out of his truck and into the woods to chase turkeys was surreal. He's no idol. Those are dangerous to your health! Yet he is a man I admire. And to call him a friend is an honor.

So we headed out into the Bluegrass state to chase Kentucky gobblers. And the chase ended at 7:02 am when I slung a bunch of lead at this old tom. This tom had 1 5/8 spurs and an 11 1/2 beard. Dude. That's a very, very old turkey and a true trophy. And I killed it with David Hale running the camera. What a day.

That makes our 5th turkey this week!

A few days before Chris Littrell and I headed to Oklahoma to hunt down Rios. And man did we hunt 'em down. Killed 3 in 2 days. Which included this double where he shot first, gave me the gun and I gave him the camera, and then I slammed the 2nd tom. Unbelievable footage man. It was one of the most fun hunts I've ever had. And fast action, too.

Chris is the pastor of Trinity Baptist Church, Lawrenceburg, TN. One of the resources we provide for churches is outdoor ministry DVD production. The concept is that churches can take their hunting footage, and we'll produce if for them as a way of sharing the gospel with their local community. Chris and his fellas at Trinity are doing just that. And let me tell you brotha', they are going to take the gospel to some ol' boys in Lawrence County that have never heard it before. It's creative, cutting edge, and it's the only way guys like these are ever going to listen.

So that's where I've been in the past 2 weeks. Hunting hard. We've got one more week. I hope to see a few more toms gobble their last day!

Still Killin' Turkeys ... In Jesus' Name!

2006-04-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

Here we are at the mid-point of the season, and we have taken 9 birds thus far. This is actually a picture of one I shot last week.

Now the deal was that many of you were to write in and tell me what the birds are doing in your area. And yet I still get contacts from you telling me that you are "reading things" but you aren't posting. Come on dude. Share the knowledge! I need it, too!!

Heading to Kentucky tomorrow to hunt with Jason Brooks, our Kentucky State Ministry Field Rep for Outdoor Ministry Network. He's a good guy. I hope we can capture a bird on film with him.

Jason leads a great outdoor ministry in his church called IBC Outdoors. Check it out. They have a super website, which is crucial to gaining awareness in your efforts to reach outdoorsmen.

Ministry & The Mundane

2006-04-10T18:44:00.000-07:00

I know that many of you who read this blog don't often respond. The reason I know that is I've had countless numbers of you tell me things you saw here ... but you left no opinion. I also know that many of you who read this stuff are rooted deeply in your church ministry - whether paid by green dollars or by eternal ones!

Listen. Everybody's got opinions. So it's time some of you mute yelpers sound off.

I've been thinking about this topic lately, but didn't quite know how to address it. Maybe I can hammer it out, so here's what I'm wondering:

what is it about church and church life that frustrates you the most?

Since this is my keen idea, I'll start.

Perhaps my biggest frustration in church life is lack of spiritual maturity. So now I must already qualify my statement and offer the disclaimer that I'm not claiming to have fully arrived. No sir. What I'm saying is that for years as a pastor, I've noticed that there are so many people who operate in the church for ... literally ... decades ... and yet they still respond to situations in life as if they are spiritual infants.

A quick example: 5 or so years ago a friend of mine was in a leadership meeting with me. Many of our church leaders were there to hammer out some various leadership stuff. My friend, a worship pastor, asked this simple question, "What is worship?"

A lady, well respected, definitely dear in heart, and someone I personally loved, responded, "Well, worship is a time where you gather in God's house to be with your family and friends."

Would it bother you that this lady had been teaching Adult bible study for over 30 years, and was seen as a pillar in the life of the church? Here answer horrified me. For her, worship was nostalgia. Precious memories. How they linger. Dinner on the grounds. Sunday preachin'. Apple pie. This is what I'm getting at.

I see it in other areas. Tenured church members have their business dealings which are no different from any other non-believer. They treat church business as if there is no spiritual maturity involved. The respond to life pretty much the same ways a non-believer would.

I'll go so far as to say this: why is it that people who are the oldest in the faith often seem to emboy the greatest amount of spiritual immaturity.

Clarity called for once again: by "oldest" I'm not necessarily referring to age range. Sometimes, however, that has been exactly the case in my pastoral experience. Yet not always. I mean, there are people I've met who are 45 years old, and have been around the church since birth. And I see no real life change in how they approach kingdom work.

So that's me. Your turn. I mean it. Holler out.

And remember, the great thing about a blog is that you can make up a name and keep your anonymity!

Tres Dias

2006-04-06T06:06:00.000-07:00

Tres Dias. Three days. The last three days have been incredible for us ... and glim for turkeys.

We've sent three toms on to glory in the last 72 hours.

Monday's bird came in on a dead run with another tom. Called him off of 4 hens. When I saw him, I just lit him up quick and hard with cutts and clucks. It was over in 3 minutes.

Tuesday's Tom was awesome. I was hunting with a buddy of mine, Chris Littrell, pastor of Trinity Baptist in Lawrenceburg, TN. Chris is forming what will be a first class outdoor ministry with his men at church. They've already had us make some sweet box calls customed designed for their church. So, I was running the camera, and positioned right over his shoulder. We saw this tom literally mating a hen in a road bed upon a ridge. It was wild. So all it took was come sweet yelps and a few aggressive cutts, and he showed up ready for his next adulturous affair. Funny thing is, I told Chris that we were going to let him get close if he kept coming. Well he did. We shot that bird at 15 steps!

Wednesday's Murder was equally as sweet. I was hunting with a fella I co-authored Into the High Country with, Jimmy Sites. Jimmy has a TV show, Spiritual Outdoor Adventures. Jimmy was running the camera, and I was the hit man. So we were hoping for a good hunt for his show, and man we got it. Birds have been henned up quite a bit lately, so we didn't even start hunting unitl 11am. Knowing that they would be a little more broken up by then. At 2:30 we got on 3 toms strutting with hens on a logging road. We eventually just put on one mack daddy of a hen/jake fight, just lit up the woods with a ruckus. These 3 toms crossed a creek to get to us! Shot him at about 30 yards.

Tres Dias. 3 for 3.

Switching gears: today's the birthday of my son Cole. He's a whoppin' Big 1 today. Related reports from unknown sources tell us that we're going to need to build an addition for our home to house all the stuff grandparents have purchased for this little fella. It leaves me wondering ... when I was a kid, 8 out of 10 times you walked out of a store empty handed. No toy guns, no new bike, no Stretch Armstrong or Bionic Man. Even last ditch attempts for a Snickers bar at the check out line never worked. Snickers only ran around 30 cents in 1979. And yet, they seem to be willing to globally finance anything for this grandbaby. No desire unmet. No purchase too large. They have become a toy mill. Spending huge wads of cash with huge smiles on their faces.

Where was I when the change happened???

Roll On Mississippi

2006-04-01T16:49:00.000-08:00

Took my second Mississippi tom this week. Shot him at 12:55pm. Had been on him for 5 hours.

Today the Tennessee season opened up. Dad & I were filming together. We had a total of 4 toms come near at one time or another. They are just totally henned up right now, and you know, it's the same in Mississippi.

Each day will produce more and more action as toms start to break up.

So here's what I want to do.

For the next 40 days or so turkey season will be going on throughout the nation. And I know that many of you who read this are avid tom chasers.

Why don't we post our thoughts, in real time, as to what birds are doing. If you kill at tom, post it here. Send me a picture and I'll post it.

And tell us what you did that gave you the opportunity to sling some heavy shot toward his red head!!I think guys everywhere would like to talk about what the birds are doing. So help a brotha' out!

Tell us what's going on in your neck of the woods!

My Last Sermon ... For A While

2006-03-24T18:03:00.000-08:00

This is no normal weekend for me.

The thing about being a preacher is that no matter what's going on in life, Sunday's coming!

You can go to the Caymans if you want; head to the Rockies for a ski trip. Fine. Great. Sunday's coming. And it's not that it's a bad thing, it's just that it can wear on you.

This Sunday I'll preach my last sermon at Belmont Heights. I'm calling it "What Every Pastor Wished Every Christian Knew: Helping You Help Your Next Pastor." I figure that I can give all my church family an inside look at a pastor's life and what he goes through.

I know that some pastors read this BLOG. I'd be interested to see your thoughts on the grind preaching can bring. I know we all love it. Yet I heard a guy say it this way one time: it's not that I get tired of it, I get tired from it.

They are having a party for me after church. You think it could be a "holy cow I'm glad he's gone" party??!!!! No. Really, it's a super gesture.

We leave straight from there and head to Mississippi to film another week of turkey hunting. Jason Brooks, our Kentucky State Ministry Field Rep will be my camera man. I hope we get on some birds; we need the footage.

There's A First Time For Everything

2006-03-21T13:09:00.000-08:00

Today was a day of firsts. I sat in as a guest host on a radio show this morning. It was kind of cool; I've done radio before. It was a promotional spot they wanted to do in conjunction with my new book, Into The High Country.

Funny thing was, halfway through the show, who steps into the studio but ... Porter Wagoner.

Porter & Chet Atkins

The legend himself. He loves to bass fish, and so he fit right in. I can't believe my promo spot was upstaged by Porter Wagoner! I tell you this: he was a gentle soul. Such a nice man. We talked some about his nifty outfits that he is famous for in country music lore, and we even talked about fishing some, too. I wish all celebrities were as nice as he was when you meet them. So that was a first.

From there I moved on to do something else I've never done. Film a TV commercial. I now know what actors mean when they say that sit around the set for hours to shoot 10 minutes of film. It took them 90 minutes to set up for a 30 second commercial. Yet that's not their fault. You have so much to do ... lighting, camera angles, shadows, props, audio issues, and then finally the commercial itself.

The line of "firsts" doesn't stop there. No. Today was unique in that it was the first, and hopefully last time, that I have to wear makeup. You got it. Just like a girl. Here I am the guy who left his church to start an outdoor ministry for guys who love to hunt and fish and yet I find myeslf sitting very still in a chair while bright lights light up my face as they apply makeup so that I look better on camera.

I told them that if they even mentioned lipstick I was leaving the set with no discussion!!

What a day. And it ain't even close to over yet!!

Go Ahead And Rain On My Day

2006-03-20T07:02:00.000-08:00

Woke up to the sound of rain beating on my gutters this morning. Great.

Today I've got to film a TV Commercial, and it's the second coming of Noah.

We get asked all the time if we are a TV show. We are not. The "Network" comes from the fact that we try and pull churches together as we partner with them to provide a network to reach outdoorsmen for Christ.

Yet we do film a lot. DVD stuff mostly. And today we are filming a commercial that will run on a nationally recognized TV show, which will let people know that finally there is a place for "all things Christian outdoors."

And it's raining. Can't do it inside ... it's about the outdoors!

So we'll see. We got a cool set we use, built for us by Old Timer Log Homes. It's really cool. We're going to use that as the scene for the commercial ... if we can ever shoot it!!

So if you read this BLOG, pray back the rain my friend!!!

Fast and Furious In The Delta

2006-03-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

So my relentless pursuit to send turkeys on to glory has had yet another chapter added. I've been hunting the last two days here in Mississippi with our Arkansas Ministry Field Rep, Carl Weatherford, who was the camera man.

We'd not even heard a tom gobble for two whole days, until today at 11:45. At 11:50 I was placing my fiber optic bead on his nice red and white head. I've never had a turkey hunt start and stop that fast. This bird was hot man.

So I shoot, and down he goes. Problem was, Carl did not have him in the camera, like I had thought. It was just a complete cross up between camera man and shooter; it's happened before. Ultimately, it's my fault. The camera man should call the shot.

So that's what's on my mind right now. I'm about to go eat dinner with Gerry Spears, and good friend of my ministry partner Ken. A good ol' boy Gerry is. Born in Mississippi, got a degree in engineering, and went right back to farming.

You honestly have to respect that. Farming is a tough life, and we need more of them.

So I'll be back in 9 days to Mississippi. Hunting toms again. Perhaps I'll get to hunt again with Bradley Brown, and Farm Bureau insurance agent. Another Mississippi home grown super nice ol' boy. It's neat the people you meet doing this. I don't know that I've ever seen as many people so eager to let me hunt their property for the sake of our ministry efforts. It's really cool.

I'm speaking tomorrow night in Olive Branch, MS, at a Wild Game Dinner. Then back home, and leave again to speak in Thomasville, GA on Thursday. Then I'm done speaking for a while.

I'm tired man. People think I have a cool job, and I do. Really cool. But it's tough work behind the scenes. Definitely worth it. No complaints. Not ever!!

Sunshine In The Swamp

2006-03-12T09:40:00.000-08:00

Our turkey hunts are underway. We traveled down just a few hours north of Miami to get started filming our 2006 turkey season.

As you can see, it wasn't a water haul. We came back with one at least. Dad took this fine Osceola.

Osceola's are 1 of 4 subspecies of of the Wild Turkey. And they are only found South of the Central Florida line. How 'bout that for some wildlife knowledge ... don't you feel smarter?!

I'll try and keep you posted on our hunts and what's going on. We leave for Mississippi in a few days to continue chasing toms.

All of the footage we are capturing is going toward our DVD projects for 2007. The Osceola footage will go toward a project I'm really stoked about ... we're calling it "My Dad Can Beat Up Your Dad."

It's going to be a DVD that is in book form, and we're calling it "the only book you'll never read." It's a father/son story that uses turkey hunting and flyfishing to relate the different aspects of a father raising a son in the outdoor world.

I think you'll really like it. It's aim is to try and help fathers and sons develop close relationships, and so we're modeling that by how dad accomplished those things with me.

Watch Out For A Moose ... And A Guy Named James

2006-03-04T20:31:00.000-08:00

Just got back from Idaho. Went there to speak at a Wild Game Dinner. Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Right up about 30 minutes from the Canada line. Let me tell you bro, that is one long flight from The Music City. I speak at wild game dinners all across the nation, and this time of year I get slammed because most churches are holding their events between January - March.

So get this. I go to leave this morning from Idaho, and Theresa, the pastor's wife, tells me, "Watch out for Moose in the morning when you leave." It just hit me hard and funny ... I don't think I've ever heard those words. I've heard watch for deer; cows in the road, horses, drunk drivers. But never "watch for Moose." It got me thinking ... should I collide with one of those, my Hertz Ford Explorer would most likely lose!

I board my plane in Spokane at ... yes ... 7:30 am; meaning that I had to leave Idaho at 4am. Fly to Oakland, and then connect non-stop from there to Nashville. It was then that I met James.

Oh how I wish I'd had one of my camera men with me. You talk about a reality show.

Flying Southwest, you know that you line up in rows A, B, or C. Well I always board online the night before so I can get line A. First on the plane.

So I step on board, and sure enough, I strike pure country gold. There's an empty seat in the front row, and on a 4 hour flight, that means something when it comes to leg room.

I sit down, and my man James begins conversing immediately. No problem; I'm a talker for sure. Yet before the first few syllables could hit my ears, the alcohol hit my nose. 10:30 am Oakland time, and James was already on the sauce.
Nice guy though. Except that he looked like Dave Chappelle, and talked like Richard Pryor. I have to admit, there were times he was funny. And the most hilarious part of all was that he literally ... literally ... never stopped talking for 4 1/2 hours. Even when I had my iPod and headphones on, James was ... literally ... talking to himself. I laughed constantly, even through my George Strait, George Jones, and Bob Seger.

Somewhere over Colorado, James clutches his carry on bag, and pulls out ... literally ... The Tasmanian Devil. A stuffed Taz with a boxing glove on his right hand. For his ailing Aunt who apparently was dying. He told me that he was going to give it to his Aunt to remind her to fight to live when he's not around. A man of heart was James. I admired him for that.

Somewhere over Oklahoma James leaned over to me and said, "Do you know what you got to have to make it in this world?" "Tell me James," I said. "You've got to have 3 things. You got to have love in yo' heart. A smile on 'yo face. And a dolla' in 'yo pocket."

Yep. I get up tomorrow morning at 5am and head to south Florida to begin our filming for this turkey season. I've got love in my heart, a tired smile on my face ... and a dollar in my pocket just for James.

Jesus Drank SunDrop

2006-02-27T14:15:00.000-08:00

I believe He did. Because SunDrop is the drink of champions. SunDrop has this big distribution center in my hometown of Tullahoma, TN. It's got 50 grams of sugar, enough caffine to enable a horse to dunk a basketball, and comes in a pretty green bottle.

Jesus drank SunDrop because it's God's gift to men who are so strung out that they must stay awake!!

By the way, I've only had 4 SunDrops since January 1. My addiction is no longer a battle. I'm finally winning.

Man I'm tired. We had a super weekend though. We had our booth at the National Wild Turkey Federation's annual convention. Get this ... 3 years ago we went there to set up a booth and pass out tracts.

Year 1 - passed out 1200
Year 2 - passed out 4500
Year 3 - passed out 7000.

I can't believe it. We could have passed out 9000 if we'd not ran out so soon.

I also made a KILLER deal with a turkey call maker. How about this ... OMN is now going to offer men's groups their own, personalized, box call. Church logo, men's group logo, your name, scripture verse, whaever.

I'm so stoked about that because if I were in a men's group - I'd be the first one to get 2 - one for me and then one for my dad.

Getting to dream up stuff like this for guy is so cool. There was just never a place to go and find that sort of thing, and to get to be an outfitter for Christian stuff like this is such an honor.

This probably sounds like a back door way of promoting something new; I promise it's not.

Well ... how do you know?!!! Trust me brotha'. I just get keyed up, SunDrop or not, when I get to dream up stuff that guys can identify with and use for ministry purposes ... even if it involves shooting a turkey during the process.

A WORD OF WARNING FOR ALL SOUTH FLORIDA OSCEOLA TURKEYS:

My crew is coming down there in exactly 168 hours to assist you in "giving up the ghost."

I'll be using my Knight & Hale Championship Cutter, my Call To Him 2 1/2 Splitter, coupled with my new Call To Him Striker & Triple Glass Custom Classic. On top of that, I'm bringing years of turkey hunting experience downloaded into my brain from study and large amounts of time in the field.

I want to let all you toms know that so that you can't say the fight wasn't fair.

You'd better have all the fun, meet all the girls, and party up.
The clock is ticking.
At least you have the benefit of knowing when your death will be.

The Enemy At The Gates

2006-02-23T03:38:00.000-08:00

Today I must set up our Outdoor Ministry Network booth at the annual convention of the National Wild Turkey Federation. Now most likely if you're reading this you are at least interested in the outdoors, so you may know about the NWTF. If not, let me tell you man, it's the coolest form of chaos you'll ever experience.

40,000 ... yes, all the zeros are there ... 40k turkey hunters will descend upon the host city, this year right here in Nashville, to see all the new products, book hunts, meet the celebrities they see on TV, and visit all the vendors who are able to sell them all sorts of gear right on the spot.

So we set up our OMN booth, to promote our ministry efforts, yes, but mainly to pass out a tract I had printed called, "The Turkey Hunter's 10 Commandments." We'll pass out around 4500 of those jokers. So basically, we'll cover more than 10% of the crowd with a gospel tract. Not bad when you realize that we can't blanket the crowd, they must walk by us.

The bad news ... it's Thursday, and I'm fighting off a sinus infection that I've had since Tuesday night. Antibiotics are kicking in finally. I know it's the enemy, because this is our biggest show of the year; plus, this is our first year of full time ministry, and this show kicks off some of our new capabilities to help outdoorsmen and churches use the woods and water to share Christ.

I'm praying over it. Just wanting God to give me the strength to make it through these next 4 days. I'm praying for a good show, too. We need a good launch.

I met with my fellas about our Hooked Tournament. We've decided that it would be best to gather sponsorship this year, and do the tourney next year, given that at all costs we want to host a quality event. Make a big impression the first time out. So therefore we must do all the prep work.

It's 5:45 am ... so I'd better get on it. We've got a lot of set up to do today.

We've got a new display for our booth, made by Old Timer Log Homes. It's really cool looking. I can't wait to set it up and see it. It looks like the front porch of a log cabin.

Hooked

2006-02-16T01:46:00.000-08:00

I'm meeting today with a few guys about a Bass Fishing Tournament.

We are going to host a tournament this summer as a fund raiser for our ministry. I fly fish, so bass fishing is not my gig. So I'm getting some of my top notch cronies to help me out.

One of my pals is Tony Sellars. He's a professional bass tournament angler, and started a TV show and ministry years ago called Anglers for Christ. You can see him if you have Direct TV or Dish Network. Even cable, too.

I've also got my buddy Daryl Welch helping me out, and some fellas that are pastors from Grace Baptist Church in Tullahoma, TN, where I grew up. We'll host it in June at Tims Ford Lake. I grew up on that lake, and it's well known throughout the South for Smallmouth. It's clean, deep water, and a big lake for sure.

My reason for having it down in Tullahoma is simple:

1 - I have a lot of contacts down there
2 - There's 3 major lakes in that area, so there's tons of anglers
3 - I've had a lifelong dream of sharing the gospel with my hometown. All of it.

Last night it hit me. I've always wanted to share the gospel in a "mass population" way to my hometown, and it occurred to me that this would do that. By the time we set up the website, do the marketing and promotion, and all that jazz, we'll get the message of Christ out to that entire multi-county area.

I think I'll pull in my buddies Jeff & Ben at LifeWay Special Projects to help, too. They help people in the faith world, especially churches, with "special projects." Just like this. I might get them to do a keychain, or some other smaller prizes I can give out, as promo tools. They are really good at that.

I've never done this, but I know it has worked well for organizations who've done it under the same pretense. I think the key is to run a first class event. I do know how to do that. I've got the contacts in the outdoor world to do it. We'll pay some great prize money, which should draw a crowd. And we'll go all out with atmosphere, door prizes, participant packages, food, etc.

I'm going to swing for the fence. I've got some celebrity contacts in the county music industry that I'll going to try and work out to come and make celeb appearances.

I'm thinking about calling it "HOOKED."

Reason being, most bass tourneys are always including the term "CLASSIC." So I thought I'd go with:

HOOKED
not the average bass tournament

On a different note, we finally got our caps. I think they look cool. We've got a lot coming at us this year. Need your prayers. Serious about that.

Far From Folsom Prison

2006-02-13T01:29:00.000-08:00

It's Monday morning. Early. Way early. Couldn't sleep.

Last night my church did somthing that was really cool. We had this Valentine's banquet, with this really weird and fun way of serving dinner. You had to order from a menu that forced you to pick food with words you'd never heard before. In a 3 course meal, I was literally served my desert and potatoes first. Soup, salad, green beans, and roll second; 3rd course was ham! It was neat. Then, we did karaoke. So me and a few pals sang Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash. It was the launch of my musical career, and its demise, all in the same moment. Much like American Idol.

I'll be leaving for Montana at the end of this week. Speaking out there at a Wild Game Dinner. It's a church in Helena, Canyon Ferry Road Baptist. I speak at a lot of these wild game banquets. It's neat. There's a huge connecting point with non-believing men who love the outdoors.

I've got a lot to do this week, which is probably why I'm up at 3:30 am.

We are going to be doing a lot of filming this year; got some awesome church resources we're doing on DVD. Bought 2 mack daddy professional video cameras. I'm really stoked about that.

So I figure that since I can't make it singing like the man in black, surely I can shoot for the small screen!!! Then again ...

Oh, one of my prostaffers, and best of pals, David Moss & wife Leah just had their baby today. Aidan Moss. He's the best. Welcome to the world of Daddy-hood you guys.

No Limit Texas Hold 'Em

2006-02-11T06:58:00.000-08:00

Leaving Vegas today.

I was eating dinner with 2 guys last night who are believers. One of them, John Thompson, put it well. He said, "I feel like I have been visually assaulted." We had a good laugh. He's right, though. If you've ever been to Vegas, you know that there are, literally, waht you might call 85% naked women everywhere. The streets are littered full with these little pamphlets showing women that have censored body parts; censoring just enough not to get fined by the local government. On the billboards, on the back of taxi's there are advertisements - everywhere.

I thought to myself last night as I was walking over to the Bellagio, "I'll never let my son come here until he's old enough to handle this." I honestly can't imagine trying to raise a child in Vegas, and yet there's stuff to do for clean fun; it's just that you can't ever get away from the not-so-clean stuff.

So get this: I had never been inside the Bellagio. Wanted to see it. They all pretty much look the same really. The thing that was really interesting was this Friday and Saturday No Limit Texas Hold 'Em poker tournament. It takes place every weekend. That place was packed. Probably 500 players or more. The thing that struck me was how expensive it was. 1000 just to "buy in" to the game, plus no hand ever played under $60.

And the stacks of chips people were housing was amazing. They wouldn't let you stand too close, but I could visually add up some of them, and I saw at least several thousand dollars being put in the the game by several players ... at every table. Unreal. You know they are going into some major debt to do this becasue there are not a ton of high rollers in Vegas at any given time.

My non-gambling expedition to Vegas' Shot Show went well. Secured a few more sponsors. One I'm really excited about; tell you about that one when we get the deal sealed.

Leavin' on a jet plane here in a few hours.
Can't wait to see my boy, and my woman, who is also my wife!

Viva Las Vegas

2006-02-09T17:29:00.000-08:00

So what do you do in Vegas when you don't gamble??
Answer: not much.

You know what I noticed the first time I came to Vegas 2 years ago? I wanted to see what a casino looked like. I've heard they are beautiful (and they are). I went to a bunch of Casinos: MGM, Caesars, Venetian. I thought I'd be walking in to this huge party scene. Man, nodoby was really that happy. Honest. I walked through the casino floor, and all I noticed was that most people were pretty intense at the tables. Then it hit me as to why ... they're mostly losing their money. Would you be happy???

Did you know that 92% of all "gamers" are actually "up" at one point in their stay at Vegas - that is - they are ahead of the house - but only 17% actually leave with more money than they came with!!! (read that out of the little embassy suites fact sheet about Vegas, on my coffee table)

I'm here at the Shot Show. It's one of the largest hunting industry shows in the world. Literally. It's always held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. If you can shoot it, use it to shoot with, hunt with it, or wear it, it's all here. For many men who love hunting, this show is like crack cocaine. It's honestly pretty cool - I'll have to admit.

I'm meeting with our sponsors, making new ones, meetn' and greetn', trying to promote our outdoor ministry; all that keen stuff.

I'll tell you this: I'm now thrust into the world of non-believers. And it's so neat. As a pastor, I was surrounded by believers, and still am some, but nothing like I used to be. I think we get so big time insulated from the "real world" that we no longer have any idea how to even communicate on a deeper level with people who don't know Christ.

So here I am in Vegas, and when it's all said and done, I'm working for the cause of Christ at the Show . . . and everyone else is just waiting for the show to close each day so they can hit the tables!!!

I think I'll go watch Everybody Loves Raymond now.

Big Meeting Went Well

2006-02-05T06:51:00.000-08:00

The meeting with my publisher went very well. This project is going to be so cool. I asked a buddy of mine in the hunting industry to co-author it with me. He's kind of the Jack Nicklaus of the hunting world. Seriously.

Now I've got to get the proposal ready for them, and then their "higher ups" have to stamp it for approval. I can't imagine them not doing it. It's so unique and it's never been done. Always a plus! Putting book proposals together take a lot of work, but I'm understanding them a little better now, so it's coming a bit easier.

I'm really humbled by the relationships God has given me in outdoor ministry. I really am. I can't believe I get to do stuff like this!!!

As soon as I can let the cat out of the bag ... you ... my blogger friend ... will be the first to know!

Found A Truck

2006-02-04T23:37:00.000-08:00

For the last month I've been searching for a truck. We need it for our outdoor ministry use in things such as traveling to film hunts, doing adventure trips, and going to trade shows.

I hate the vehicle purchasing process. You just feel that when you walk on to the lot you have your intestines hanging out! You just know you are getting taken. That's how you feel anyway. There are a lot of great car dealers out there who are people of integrity. There really are. I've found that it helps to try and find one person you really trust, and stick with them.

I actually went back to a buddy of mine to find this Toyota Tundra. His name is Chris Eaves. He and I hung out in high school, believe it or not! He lives in my hometown, about 90 miles from Nashville. A little big town called Tullahoma. I love that place. Such a super place to raise a family.

I'm glad to have it. Pick 'er up on Monday.

Big Meeting Today

2006-01-31T03:49:00.000-08:00

Today I've got a big meeting with my publisher. We are looking at a 3rd book to publish. I'm really excited about it. It's going to be the first of it's kind really. I hope we can land on a concept that will work well. Wish I could tell you what it is - but I will here soon I hope.

In fact, I'm going to self-publish it if I must. It's just such a unique idea that I am absolutely certain people in my niche of life would dig it like a shovel.

It's so weird being an "author." Honest. I never really saw myself that way. It just kind of happened. The fact that anybody would want to read something you write is pretty humbling if you ask me.

My dad ask me once, "What do you think motivates an author to write?"

Dude, I could only think of one response, "Authors think that people need to hear what you've got to say!"

It's the truth though, right? It's not stuck up to think that. I mean, everyone else is talking, you just want to make your opinion official!! So you convince publishers that they should print your opinion for all the masses to read. It's pretty funny if you think about it.

I can't imagine what it must be like to be a real author, though. Like a Tom Clancy, or maybe a Rick Warren, or someone like that. Somebody who wrote stuff that millions have read. That must be tough to do. To handle all of it. I'm glad I'm not like a Hemmingway, because that would mean I'd be doing some pretty nifty BLOGing given that I'd be dead!!!

You know, there's a verse that's been stuck in my mind like glue on the bottom of your shoe.

By the way, don't you wish people would throw their used gum in a place where you, the innocent pedestrian, won't have to carry it along with you for the next 3 days! Come on people.

Anyway, it's Proverbs 16:2. It says that all of our ways are innocent in our own eyes, but the Lord weighs the motive.

Man, that's huge. Very sobering. I tell you this: God has really used that Scripture a lot in my life over the past two years. The deal is, He can make anything successful.

The real question is, "why am I doing this?" No matter if it's job related, hobbies, relationships ... motives matter to God in some big ways. I think it's because motives reveal the true nature of your heart. They are mirrors of who you are personally.

Go Get Your Own Wise Man - Dave's Already Taken.

2006-01-25T20:37:00.000-08:00

One of the most common things I think people do is seek out advice without really wanting the hard core truth. That is, we want people to tell us what we want to hear.

It's pretty lame, though, to do that, don't you think? I remember reading a portion of Bill Gates' book, Business at the Speed of Thought. He said basically that if you can't handle bad news, you're in trouble. Bad news is your friend, said Gates. Without it, how can you improve?

So where am I going with this?

This whole BLOG experience is so that you can look inside my little mind and maybe we can learn some stuff together as we all talk about it. So here's something I've learned: you've got to surround yourself with really wise people if you want to succeed.

A really good friend of mine is a guy named Dave Wardell. Dave is actually ... ready for this ... the co-founder of Promise Keepers! That's right. He and coach Bill McCartney started this men's movement that spawned into what many consider to be the most influential movement of God in the last 75 years.

Dave with a big high country bull from Colorado.

I called Dave one day at his office. We spent the first 30 minutes talking about different tactics that can help you kill turkeys more effectively. Priorities, you know, must come first.

I was just needing some advice on what to do when you find yourself smack in the middle of a movement that is getting national attention, and yet you didn't intended for that to happen. Now you got to understand that Dave is absolutely the most humble man of God you'll meet. And he's famous in the Christian community. I love him because he's so consistent. Always the same Dave. Dave told me something that I'll never forget. He said, "Jason, you've got to form yourself a board of advisors - and be sure that you surround yourself with people who are not impressed by you."

Those words have rooted up in my spirit since that conversation.

One thing that God has done for me thus far is that He has connected me with men, like Dave, or Frank Waters, my finanical planner, or Ken Gregory (business partner); they are men who care about me, and yet they care too much just to stroke my own little ego.

You've got to have that if you are launching out into a new venture. The bottom line is: if you want someone to tell you what you want to hear, ask your mom.

Losing Weight In One Day

2006-01-15T15:19:00.000-08:00

Well I did it. Cut the cord.

I told my church of where God was leading me in my path in following the call for Christ. I didn't flip out and was able to share with them my heart for where God was taking me. They were very supportive. And I don't think that anybody was really shocked. They'd watched this thing take form over the last 3 years.

After the service was over and everyone was leaving, I made the walk toward my office. The thought occurred to me that I felt 20 pounds lighter. All day I felt this heavy fog over me; knowing it was the thing to do, yet knowing that I'm launching out in a new direction that is different than my current church setting.

The Clock Is Ticking

2006-01-14T18:21:00.000-08:00

Today my dad and I were looking around these little shops in "downtown" Leipers Fork, TN. Downtown Leipers is akin to Mayberry! It's cool though. I go there often. Eat at Pucketts if you want some good Southern cookin'. We went into this shop where this guy makes flintlock rifles. If you're not familiar, they are old school rifles, like Davy Crockett would use. Now you get the picture, right?!

There on the window ledge was a stack of Sportsman's Bibles. The bible that I designed. I couldn't believe it. This bible has been out over a year, and I continue to find it so weird to see something you did in the stores. I still can't get use to it. Publishing a bible was one of the coolest honors I've had in my life. Very humbling.

Still, I'm nervous. The clock is ticking. Only fourteen hours until I tell my church that I'm stepping down as pastor. It's been on my mind all week. It's flooded my thoughts every hour of today. I'm so confident in what God is doing with Outdoor Ministry Network. It's just that I really love my church, and I just want this to be the right move for everyone involved.

When people say that real men cry, I won't go that far. That is, I'm no cry baby. I do believe however that a man should not be afraid to cry, so I hope that I keep it together tomorrow morning.

Moses ... continued

2006-01-13T05:41:00.000-08:00

Today I've got to prepare my sermon for Sunday. It's not just any old sermon though. After that I'll inform the church of our plans to take our outdoor ministry full time.

It's weird thinking that after March 31, I won't be preaching every single Sunday. I feel an identity crisis coming my way!

Since I've been thinking about Moses lately, I figured I'd go with it. I've been doing this sermon series on prayer. This sermon I'm talking about "When God Speaks."

The way I see it, when you pray, you should expect God to speak. Lilly Tomlin once said, "Why is it that when we speak to God they call it prayer. When God speaks to us, they call it schizophrenia." That's hilarious! So when He does speak to your heart, you have some choices to make and some fears to overcome. That's me. I think it was Moses, too.

I wonder how my church is going to react? I don't think they'll be shocked at all. They've seen this thing be born and start to live on it's own. It will be very hard to find the words to say, "Hey, I'm leavin'." My wife and I love Belmont Heights so much. And you know, it's hard to find a church you love.

Look It In The Teeth

2006-01-12T18:19:00.000-08:00

Today I talked with two major industry magazines in the hunting world. They are looking at doing a "human interest" feature on our outdoor ministry. Man, exposure is such a huge deal to any organization, especially our's given that it's new.

I can't tell you how much I hope they follow through with it. It would be such a gift from God. I find myself constantly wondering if our marketing budget will do the job the first year. I sure hope it does.

I think it's neat how many people have seemed so genuinely interested in this thing. It's never been done before, and I guess that's what makes it cool. I have to admit, though, I often get nervous, and I'm not a nervous person.

It's just that there are so many things at stake. I want to be sure that God gets full credit for all the good things that are happening to us, so I don't want to fail Him on that one. Then there is the fact that you have a family to take care of. Don't want to drop the ball there either. Plus, there's your financial backers. Their money is such a humbling gift and I have such respect for their backing.

That's faith though man. It's how it works. I've been thinking a whole lot about Moses lately. That dude must have been scared, too. Leaving the familiar. God is big enough - we certainly know that. Trust is hard though. Even for those of us who usually don't worry too much.

I'm just going to treat this whole thing like a junk yard dawg. Look it in the teeth and get to fighting!

Road Trippin'

2006-01-10T18:14:00.000-08:00

I just got back from Orlando. Had to teach a few conferences for LifeWay there. They have this thing called "Rec Lab" - it's their national conference for Recreation Ministers. I taught some sessions on how to reach guys who love to hunt and fish. The guy who leads this area is John Garner, and he's a good friend of mine. Just like me in many respects - (well, except he's a lot older and has less hair) - he loves to be creative and find new ways to do ministry. Neither one of us are good at details!!

Dude ... we picked up 78 new churches into our network. Beyond belief. That puts us now in 35 states across the USA in only 3 years of operation. I can't believe that.

It was hard being away from my family for 6 days. Really hard.

I feel so sorry for people who have to travel all the time - like every week - for their jobs. I cannot imagine living out of hotels, no matter how nice they are. Pretty soon they all start to look alike.

* by the way - don't think I love to look at my own picture. I posted this one again because I am having trouble figuring out how to use this BLOG's server and this was the only way I could figure it out!

Thrown In Head First

2006-01-06T04:08:00.000-08:00

I just got back from Atlanta. To be candid, I hate Atlanta. Always have.

7 lanes in some places. You can't get anywhere in a short amount of time. Concrete everywhere. I just hate big cities. Nashville is far too big for me if you want to know the truth.

I was at the Archery Trade Association, the nation's largest archery trade show. Meeting with sponsors, working on new sponsorsihps, shakin' hands and pattin' backs. We've got some great sponsors. Check our our sponsors page - it's got some great links. If you love to hunt and fish!

You know, as a pastor, I spent 95% of my time in a world that was full of believers. I tried to make relationships with non-believers, but it's hard. Seriously. No excuses - but think about it - just how "friendly" can you get with the cashier at Kroger or the guy who changes your oil until they start thinking you're weird? I've got some relationships I've been developing with non-believers, maybe 4-5 people. Yet pastors are surrounded constantly by a believing crowd.

Now there are some pastors that spend more time with non-believers. Mostly, though, that's cold call visits to a house where they are just doing "visitation." I've never worked well that way. I seem to have a better impact when I take the time to cultivate a genuine relationshiop with a person.

I don't think anybody wants to feel like they are a targeted "project" for a church. But people don't mind being your friend.

It occured to me while at the ATA show that I am being thrown head first into a world dominated by non-believers. I dig that. I am basically a missionary to the outdoor community. And while it's ground that has been unmapped thusfar, I find it quite humbling that God has commissioned Outdoor Ministry Network to be conduit for His cause to this niche.

On the way back I put the finishing touches on a late season elk hunt in the high country of Colorado. Going in on horseback baby! Should be at least 2 feet of snow on the ground. It's through Bar H Outfitters. Randy and Jeanne Horne. Cowboy up come November!

Thought I'd throw in a pic of the biggest deer I've ever killed. He was mid-western monster. 14 pointer. Shot that brute with my bow at 12 yards - from the ground. Eyeball to eyeball. A true Hemmingway moment!

Today's my wife's birthday. H.B.D Sweetie. Michelle is 31!! And a mom, too. A good one.

Tired & Inspired!

2006-01-02T09:37:00.000-08:00

I'm tired man. Tired. Mainly because I cut wood for my dad yesterday. Dad had heart surgery right during elk season last fall. Quadruple bypass. So he can't lift much right now. So yesterday I went over to his house and took my Stihl MS 260 Pro chainsaw and dominated some downed hickorys like Ali whupin' up on Sonny Liston.

Let me tell you something straight up. If you ever have a need to recapture your manhood. If you ever feel boxed in from Corporate America. Strap on your boots, grab a chain saw, and let 'er eat man. Then, grab that Maul and start splitting that stuff - busting it up like a smart bomb on Al Qaeda.

I'm tired, too, because of all the work involved in starting a ministry that's never been attempted before. Man, I'm meeting with business consultants, marketing firms, lawyers who have to set up the documents for tax purposes ... dude ... I am a fish out of water.

Yet we've got to do this thing right. Not just legally, but to also get the word out there to the believers who love to hunt and fish. It's so weird in that it's so much fun and yet so exhausting at the same time. Better than having a job you hate, right?!

Today I watched John McLean talk abou fly fishing. You may have heard of John, and probably don't remember it. Ever seen "A River Runs Through It"? John is the actual son of Normal McLean, played by Tom Scaritt (the father and Presbyterian pastor). Norman wrote A River Runs Through It.

I had a thought. A good one I hope.

Much of our outdoor ministry will revolve around, in some shape of form, film production. Making DVD's for outdoor ministry purposes. They will have 2 purposes. Some will be purely designed to share the gospel with outdoorsmen, some will be for bible studies.

That's right. Hopefully by the year end of year 2, we will have a full line of DVD's that will have one full year of bible study material just for guys who like to hunt and fish.

So here's my thought. I'm going to do a DVD bible study for Fly Fisherman. I love to fly fish, and have for years.

Recently I talked with a guide, a friend up in Montana. He suggested we look at the Northwestern section near Missoula. All kinds of rivers run through there.

So I'm thinking that the summer will afford me a little time to film. I'm thinking about traveling to that Mecca of Missoula, and shooting on location there.

What In The World Am I Doing?

2005-12-30T03:04:00.000-08:00

It's 5:03 am. And I'm not a morning freak. There's just so much to do with this new venture that I'm having a hard time sleeping here lately. Have you ever had so much on your mind that your brain does into T1 mode? That's how I've been lately. Don't get me wrong ... it's all good stuff.

This is my first Blog. Ever.

My buddy Ben Stroup is this guy who works for a group called LifeWay. He encouraged me to do this thing, and he said I should post stuff all the time. I think Ben needs to let his hair grow out, stop feeding his Superman obsession, and find some other person to pick on.

And I'm thinking - why would you want to be here? That's a good question. If you're here at 5:03 am and you're not a morning person either, then go back to bed Ob1. Read it later.

Here's what makes this who blog worth while - if you ask me: you can watch me, like some little fly on the wall, as I go through the goods, the bads, the ugly, the God only knows what - of leaving all that I am familar with to launch this new ministry venture.

So here's my story:

I love my church. And let me tell you something - not every pastor can say that! Seriously bro.

Erwin McManus, (pastor in Hollywood), once said, "The people that make the church messy also make it meaningful." (An Unstoppable Force, read it.) I guess he's right.

I started preaching when I was 17 years old, and there have been times that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or honestly duke it out with some other Christians. Seriously.

There's a lot of pastors out there that have some internalized anger and bitterness because they get treated like mutt dawg from their church members. Not me. Belmont Heights is the coolest church I ever pastored. By far. It sits on the campus of Belmont University in Nashville, TN.

And what pastor would not DREAM of pastoring a church on a college campus? I was paid well, treated great, and even had my own private bathroom. Donlad Trump got nothin' on me!

What in the world am I doing? That's my question.

Thing is - what do you do when you are walking through your regular life one day and you get your own burning bush? That place in time where God brings you the unexpected.

You know. Just like Moses. And it's at that point that you have your own pretty little crisis. What do you do next?

And that's the life of faith, right? What do you think?

So why did I do it?

I know this may sound weird, maybe even touchy-feely, and I'm not touchy-feely, so stop trying to hug the computer screen.

The reason I did is because men have been forgotten by the church. Yes, it's my opinion. But they have. The best quote I think I've ever heard to describe most (not all) churches today is "It's a women's club with male officers."

Churches throw up Mr. Rogers on the lobby wall as the model to live by. Clean, neat, and dude how he so badly wants you to be his neighbor.

Did Mr. Rogers ever sin? Yeah, because the New Testament tells me so. But he sure didn't live in my universe. Did he ever drink a beer? Did he ever say a cuss word when he whiffed a 4 iron? Did he ever want to buy a Catepillar bulldozer and just tear the snot out of a building just to see what would happen?

Men have been domesticated by the church, but not by God! John Eldredge wrote the best book I think ever written on male spirituality, Wild At Heart. He said it best, "Look around the church today and what you'll see is that the average Christian man is ... bored." God is not boring, but sometimes His people are.

And so I wanted to help men find a way to use the outdoors to find real spiritual meaning for themselves, and to help their buddies find it, too.

So there it is. I like to shoot turkeys and eat them, and I made a ministry out of it.

Man I love America! Where anything can happen!

Hey - check out my website. God Himself knows I need the traffic!!!

www.outdoorministrynetwork.com

This is and will forever be my longest blog ever Ben. Hope you are happy.