 The Man Minute- Sixty second investments in Christ-Like manhood Sendero Luminoso. < lit., Spanish for Shining Path While filming a hunt for the Record Book Project, my soul brother, Jeremy Harrill, and I were able to roll tape at the legendary Tecomate Ranch in South Texas. The sovereignty of the moment came to down to the last evening as a really nice 10 pointer emerged in the sendero. My heart rate cannoned. He was not the largest whitetail I've ever taken, yet, even still, my eyes were wide because I knew I was about to pull the trigger on closing out this piece of the project. Once the smoke cleared, my eyes spoke with disbelief. In more than most of the cases like this I see antlers on the ground when my muzzleloader explodes. On this cloudless evening, all I saw was Texas scrub brush at the end of my barrel. I was honestly sick at my stomach. I had no idea as to what the deer had done post-shot, for the thick carpentry of limbs and thorn structure that line the senderos had swallowed up any chance of even getting a glimpse of him. I felt as if I had miserably failed the team, my guide, my camera man, his church, and everyone who'd ever given to support The Record Book. Bruce seemed all week to be an incredibly patient man. Calculating. Cautious. Introspective. Our guide for this hunt, he was a man who had quickly proven himself to be in it for one reason ... to help us turn the page on this part of the story. Finding only two dime-sized spots of blood, we decided not to push it. Now I was spiraling off into the worst abyss known to every big game hunter; that moment when you know, based on past experience, that odds are you've seen the last of that set of antlers. Sitting speechless and staring into the night, as we were about to go back to the lodge and review the footage, Bruce comes to the truck. Every great guide knows this is not the moment to say much of anything to your hunter. Leaning just inside the threshold of the window he looks at me and communicates simple and precise words of encouragement telling us that the fight is far from over with finding this buck.  Reviewing the footage at the kitchen table, we find that the shot is far better than anticipated. In one of the most humbling moments of my three decades of hunting, I began to see every single one of the Tecomate guides quietly strap on their gear. Though by no means required to, every one of them was intent on going to the lighted path, now gleaming with a white December moon, to help me find him.
It was the most classy thing I've ever seen. 52 yards in and seven minutes later into the thick country, I hear Mark, one of the Tecomate guides yell out, "We've got a dead deer over here." Bruce firmly extended his hand to congratulate me. Having now run the entire fly wheel of human emotional consumption, I knew I could do far better than a hand shake. Reaching out to hug him, my Montana brother said "I'm not much of a hugger." "I don't really care, Bruce" were the only words that rose up from my heart. Hunting camp or not, surrounded by men or by no one, I was hugging ol' Bruce for he had guided me with excellence all three days. Some paths in life are clad in cactus and dust that tear your world apart. Some are laced with moments of indescribable joy. I had experienced both in a matter of three rotations of the clock. Bruce, and his brotherhood of guides, were willing to settle for nothing less than illuminating the path for my journey, in order that they might be their brother's keeper. Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. - Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 www.jasoncruisespeaks.com and www.outdoorministrynetwork.com
0 Comments
 Jason Cruise Founder Outdoor Ministry Network The Man Minute- Sixty second investestments in Christ-Like manhood November 4th the Lord added to the roster of Team Cruise by bringing us our second son, Tucker. I'm forever amazed at how, through the birth of a child, a parent can instantly love someone so deep, so fast, and so full. It is a kind of love that must be experienced first person in order to be understood, and even then it is unexplainable. It wasn't until I became a dad that I finally understood what it meant to be ready and fully able to give my life for another person. I would gladly exchange my life to insure that my two sons could keep theirs. Yet, in that same moment, I cannot find any reason to give either of my two sons lives for someone else. You can take me, my possessions, my money. Take whatever you want, but you cannot have my boys. Call me unloving, call me less than a Christian, call me whatever you want to call me. No person's life is worthy the death of either of my two sons.  Tucker Cruise My mind drifts to a night years ago when a mama held a baby in her arms, while a guy, just like me, looked on in speechless amazement. Thirty-three years later that same mom and dad would look in amazed disbelief watching just a few yards away as blood flowed out of His body, the same body that they once held in their arms. No pain is so great as that of watching your kids hurt from being injured. I cannot relate to the feeling Joseph must have felt standing there on the dirt of Calvary's hill. I cannot relate to the feelings going through the heart of God as He watched Jesus gasp for breath, all the while knowing that it was the both of them that blew breath into Adam.
That night in the manger, the Heavenly Father, present there in the barn along with Joseph, knew the outcome for this pretty little baby boy. The Heavenly Father knew He would have to give up His boy if the whole world were to have access to forgiveness, for "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." It is love I do not understand, for the raw truth is that I am sure I would have let the whole sin-sick world suffer in order to save Cole or Tucker. To give His son is love of the deepest root, planted in the heart of a God who knew there was no other way. I stand amazed in the presence. www.jasoncruisespeaks.com and www.outdoorministrynetwork.com  Jason Cruise Founder Outdoor Ministry Network The Man Minute- Sixty second investments in Christ-Like manhood
Don't judge me." A statement that is now as much a part of American culture as apple pie and baseball. What was intended by Scripture to be a guideline for followers of Christ to refrain from making harsh and incomplete assessments about someone's character has now changed in definition to basically mean, "You don't have the right to tell me when I'm wrong, no matter what I'm doing." Do Christians have a right to judge? The answer is ... absolutely. The problem is found in how one actually defines judgment. Jesus said, "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:1-3) Was Jesus saying that as His follower you never have the right, nor the ability, to gather solid, biblical conclusions? No. That's brainless. In that same passage Jesus was talking about false prophets and said, "So then, you will know them by their fruits." Thus, you'll know to stay away because you can make biblical assessments on who they are by the actions they take. That's judgment in its truest form. So, what was He getting at by warning us about judgment? Spiritually immature judgment is when you make character assessments about someone based on pure assumption. You don't know the whole story, so you are left to assume the rest of the story; and, every time I've done that in my entire life, I was so far off the mark it was comical! Never assume character based on limited interaction. In effect, we end up "judging" others by relative comparison to our own lives, thus the idea of "the speck in your eye." The "standard of measure" is important here. In other words, it's the same as saying, "Well, my life isn't perfect, but at least I'm not like him." That's immature spirituality and it's judgmental. Let's flip the page. Perhaps you know a believer that has, over time, demonstrated horrible temperament. Over and over again this person is explosive, yet they carry the name of Christ. So, you approach them and tell them that you see a consistent, toxic trait in their heart and actions. Are you judging them by calling them an angry person? No. They are, in fact, an angry person and ongoing, unresolved anger is not consistent with the spirit of the living God. The bottom line is that Jesus gave us indicators as to how to make righteous assessments. What is positioned at the heart of this entire matter is motive. Are you lashing out with an assumption about someone, or are you truly concerned and wanting to restore that person to a better walk with God because you see consistent inconsistencies in their walk with the Lord? Never confuse truth telling with being judgmental. No matter what the world may tell you, God, nor any of His followers, are bound to culture's definition of truth and righteousness. www.jasoncruisespeaks.com and www.outdoorministrynetwork.com |
Jason CruiseJason Cruise is the founder of Mission. Mission was created to "vindicate the fatherless" in a country known as Moldova. To learn more go to www.themissionvision.net Jason is a well known speaker traveling across the country sharing his love for Christ at wildgame dinners and conferences. Jason has created many valuable resources for the outdoorsmen to take them deeper into their walk with their Creator. These items include DVD's, Bibles, and Bible studies. Archives
July 2014
Categories |
RSS Feed
