My son-in-law from Alaska went elk hunting yesterday and shot a 5×5 bull elk. He carried a quarter back to the pick-up in the rain and the snow and came home, an hour’s drive, to get help with the rest of the elk. My son Sam and his son went back with him, and they got it packed out and home this morning at 2:00 am. We spent all day cutting it up, grinding it, and wrapping it up and into the freezer. They are leaving for Fairbanks, Alaska, tomorrow morning, taking all they can in four coolers. It was a delightful time for me, with kids hunting, retrieving, and processing elk.

It is interesting to think about hunting for elk, deer, moose, or whatever. You have this elusive goal, but it is not a sure thing because the target has a will of its own: not to get shot. So you get up early, walk in the cold and the rain, climb over trees and rocks, hike for miles and miles, looking through your binoculars until your eyes hurt, hoping against hope that you will see a herd of elk. In Oregon, about one hunter in ten is successful. And if you don’t kill something, you try again the following year.

People who don’t hunt don’t understand those who do hunt’s obsession with killing something. But an obsession it is. Why? Is it simply the meat and food you provide for your family? Most would agree that you could buy it cheaper than the hunting trip, the guns, and the ammunition cost. So why? I think that it is simply the challenge. God created us for challenge and accomplishment, and we aren’t happy unless we are tripping over logs trying to conquer something.

I love hunting, but I also love attempting to do something significant for God in His church. To start a ministry, plan an event, and persuade people that they need Jesus. God has given every person a passion, a gift, a strength, an ability to do something with their life that matters for all eternity. If you discover that passion and use your giftedness to accomplish it, you will be the happiest person in the world, or at least feel like it.