| Outdoor Truths: Aiming Outdoorsmen Toward Christ Sept. 8th |
Gary Miller ~ outdoortruths.org
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To cull means to select or separate. I first learned the term at the lumber yard. I would see those who would cull the two by fours. They would lay aside the crooked ones and select the good ones. Fishermen use this technique all the time. After they catch a limit of fish, they’ll begin to cull the small ones if a bigger one is caught. In deer hunting, culling is simply passing up one deer for another. This was a practice that I never participated in until a few years ago. I can remember when my motto was, “if it’s brown, it’s down!” That’s probably an exaggeration, but I did let few deer pass. At that time, the limit was more plentiful and I was ignorant of the aspect of deer management. And my own desires were not the same. Today is much different. After taking my share of small bucks, I try to wait on more mature bucks and does. I can remember just last year, passing on an eight pointer in Ohio and thinking about my prior days when that particular deer would have been a no-brainer. That day I culled him, waiting on the possibility of a larger one. Now I’m not saying this approach is one that everyone should adopt. I’m afraid many hunters would stop hunting if this was the case. But for me, it’s just a new challenge. In some states, it’s easier to pass up smaller deer. The limit may only be one buck, so to shoot that four-pointer would bring a quick end to the season. Folks in these states learn the art of culling early.
Some think that God must cull certain people – that He passes on individuals who are of lesser “quality.” They envision God has a trophy hunter who only selects men and women who have impeccable character and no inferior qualities. And because most of us consider ourselves inferior, we think God must not want us. We don’t consider ourselves the “trophy” type. The Heavenly Father is not that way. Not only does he want us, but He is pursuing us just as a hunter pursues his prey. That means that we are a trophy to Him no matter how many flaws we may have. And it means that He sees something within us that makes Him want to keep us as someone who is not just different, but special.
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