The Outdoors and the Making of Godly Men

I love the outdoors -- always have and always will.  My time outside reminds me of how great and awesome a God that we have an opportunity to serve.  That love of the outdoors has grown further as I have been reading through Alan Redpath's book The Making of a Godly Man.  In that book, Redpath focuses on the life of David and divides the life into two areas -- "Tested in Training" and "Lessons in Leadership."  The primary concern for me is David's training in his younger years because it greatly involves the outdoors.

God sent Samuel the prophet to anoint a new king due to Saul's great disobedience, David, the youngest son of Jesse, was not to be found at home.  Where was he -- out in the field tending the sheep (1 Samuel 16:11).  Later on, when David went to visit the army and saw Goliath taunting Israel, he stood up for God's name and shared his experiences in "battle" -- fighting off a lion, bear, and possibly even wolves (1 Samuel 17:34-36).  David became great friends with the son of a king because they shared a common interest of the outdoors.  If you read, 1 Samuel 20:20-23, the king's son used archery as a signal to David in whether he should stay in the capital city or flee for his life.  When David took flight from Saul, he stayed in the wilderness and lived primarily off the land (1 Samuel 23:14-18).  He did not have a structure within which to reside, so he literally camped in forests or took shelter in mountainous caves.   As David matured during the times of adversity, he largely authored the Psalms, which is a highly popular and frequently read book of the Bible.  In reading the Psalms, we see multiple references to the grandeur of creation because "the heavens declare the glory of God" (Psalm 19:1).  See also Psalm 8:3 which speaks of "the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place."

So, it is clear from Scripture that God used the outdoors to totally shape David who was described as "a man after God's own heart" (Acts 13:22).  You know what?  God still uses the outdoors to make men today.  Look at the picture below that a friend of mine shared on Facebook because it speaks truth about hunting in the outdoors:

Unfortunately, in our modern world, we have filled that "thinking" and "reflecting" time with games or checking Facebook on our cell phones.  Rather than doing so, why not use that time (and use of the cell phone) by reading God's Word.  If you go to the woods with a "hunting buddy," spend some time reflecting on the beauty of His creation and how He loves use supremely.  Those thoughts will change your life in a radical nature.

The thinking and reflecting time should be upon building a stronger relationship with God through Jesus Christ our Lord.  After all, if our relationship with God is not right, then our relationship with others cannot be right.