RUSSELL THORNBERRY OUTDOORS

March 2009 Newsletter

Unexpected Adventure

A few days after my return from a February mission trip to Honduras I began to feel sick and within two days my condition worsened.  On the third morning my wife took me to the Emergency department of Baptist South Hospital in Montgomery.  Within minutes of my arrival I started getting severe chills and began to shake.  My fever spiked from 97 degrees to 104 degrees, my heart was in atrial fibrillation, my blood pressure dropped off the charts and I went into violent rigors caused by septic shock.  I had no idea what was wrong except that I was very sick.  Somewhere in the process I lost consciousness of what was happening.  The next thing I remember was being told that I had an Ecoli infection in my blood stream and that had I not been sitting in the emergency room when I went into shock I would have died.

 

Dr. John Moorehouse caring for an aged widow while on a mission trip in Honduras.

A Friend Indeed
The reason I went to that specific hospital was because my dear friend and brother in Christ, Dr. John Moorehouse, was on duty there.  And it was John who directed the procedures that saved my life. Only a few days before John and I had just been in Honduras on a mission trip together and then suddenly I was at death’s door and my life was in his hands.  I found awesome comfort in knowing John was there. Friendship takes on a whole new meaning when one friend saves the life of the other.  I am able to write this newsletter because of John’s medical expertise and the grace and marvelous timing of God. 

With Gratitude
The outpouring of love and prayers on my behalf was overwhelming and I want to express my deepest gratitude to my wife Sharleen and all those who called, emailed and prayed for me.  My daughters Michelle and Clarissa flew in from Colorado Springs and Dallas respectively, and spent time with me in the hospital. I received numerous phone calls from my son Darren in Edinburgh, Scotland.  No words can express how much that meant to me.  Michelle wrote a most touching blog on her website about my “near death” experience and when I read it I cried.  At the end she attached a song she wrote for me that is so powerful I want to share it with you.  Take a moment and click on Michelle's blog. You’ll be blessed.

2009 Southwest Sportsmen Retreat - May 15-17, 2009
Tesoro Escondido Ranch - Mineral Wells, Texas

For several years, Dudley Hall and I have co-sponsored a men’s retreat focused on fun and ministry. This year the Sportsmen’s Retreat will be held May 15-17, 2009 at the beautiful new facility at Tesoro Escondido Ranch, in Mineral Wells, Texas. In addition to some serious outdoors teaching and seminars, there are numerous hilarious “equal inopportunity” events that you won’t find anywhere else. How about bow and arrow golf, the Texas Hog Toss, an Atl Atl throwing contest and a pickle spitting contest – to name a few?  Top off the activities with the funniest campfire songs and wildest story tellers that ever drew a breath!  Amidst all the fun and competitions there will also be extraordinary teaching times that will enlighten and challenge Christian men.

Fly-casting Seminar -- Taught by yours truly. Last year even the rank amateurs started to cast like old veterans.

Turkey-calling Seminar – Tips and practice on calling up that big gobbler, this seminar ends with a contest including prizes for the best turkeys…er…callers.

Shot-gunning Workshop -- Taught by ace shotgunner “Deadly Dudley Hall” – with ample time to get into the swing of wing shooting and powder some clay targets.

Archery Workshop -- A 3-D archery course will be available with instruction on improving your skills. BYOB: Bring your own Bow.

For information and bookings call: Successful Christian Living Ministries – (817) 267-9224 or log onto www.sclm.org.

Getting Ready For Deer Season
I’ll wind up this month’s newsletter with a video clip I think you’ll enjoy.  My friend John Burke and his son Jeremy are serious deer hunters, however, they may have taken their hunting pursuits to a rare extreme.  Click here and see what I mean  . . .

Coffee Room Crisis

I often come into the break room at the office to find an empty coffee pot left on the burner.  Someone obviously took the last cup and left without regard for the next coffee drinker. Refilling the pot is a simple task that would have taken less than one minute.  It’s a universal problem.

Robert lives to catch the break room bandit in the act.  He is incensed by the fact that he’s been wronged by a fellow employee.  According to Robert, if he could, he would set traps.  He wants a hidden video camera in the break room that would allow him to monitor the mystery culprit from his computer.

Why is Robert so offended by an empty coffee pot?  Because he is entitled to be treated better, and unless justice is carried out according to his “law of empty pots,” Robert cannot rest.

Entitlement is a peculiar condition – one that puts demands and expectations on others because of perceived personal importance and superiority.  Entitlement demands equality but desires superiority.  It is ultimate legalism.

Grace would fill the empty pot with fresh coffee for the sake of others.  Law would execute the one who left the pot empty.

Grace is a savior who sacrificed his life for those who hated him.  Legalism nailed him to a cross.

Getting Kids Steady

Sometimes a youngster’s desire to hunt exceeds their capacity to handle a rifle like an adult.  Typically the rifle is too heavy for them to steady without a solid rest.  Just finding a rest for the forend of the rifle isn’t the full answer to the problem.  The child still has to deal with some of the weight of the rifle, which is hard for them to shoulder and hold rock solid.  Such was the case when my grand daughter, Ivy Patterson, went on her first deer hunt with me when she was just 9 years old.  Because she is a small person, I cut down and reformed the walnut rifle stock to fit her. Then I found a rifle holder designed to attach to treestands.  With a little imagination I altered the rifle holder to mount on a tripod.  This system held the full weight of the rifle.  All Ivy had to do was snuggle in behind it, pull it into her shoulder, get steady and shoot.  The vertical and horizontal adjustments on the head of the tripod were just tight enough to enable her to move the rifle under a bit of tension, which kept her steady.  It enabled her to shoot like a pro.  The tripod gun rest is portable and easily set up in a ground blind or box blind.