Every whitetail bowhunter worth his salt is trying to locate the perfect spot to place his stand or blind where the deer will pass within bow range and give him the shot he wants.
I recently found just such a place. I got permission to hunt on a farm where I had seen numerous bucks feeding in an alfalfa field. My first task was to scout the land to find where the bucks were entering the field – hopefully near a big enough tree in which to place my treestand. That first evening I sat tucked away in the edge of the timber on a hill that overlooked the whole pasture so I could see exactly where the deer were entering the field. Just before dark I had my answer. They were coming out of the timber corner directly across the gravel road, jumping the fence and entering the field where I could hunt. That was both the good news and the bad news. The other side of the road, where the deer were obviously bedding, was off limits and heavily posted. I watched in amazement as no less than nine bucks came out on a trail directly under a big spruce tree before they crossed the road and entered my field. With a stand in that big spruce, a hunter would have a chip shot at every buck I saw, but it was posted – “NO HUNTING!”
When the bucks entered the field where I could hunt, they stayed pretty close to the road so that they could dash back to their refuge quickly. Subsequently, they stayed in the wide open where there was no way to approach them with a bow and arrow. To make matters worse, two of them were whoppers. I spent another evening watching in hopes that the deer would do something different but they didn’t. They had a good thing going and they knew it.
It would have been so easy to put a stand in that tree on the forbidden side of the road and arrow one of those big bucks. No one would ever know. It would have been the perfect setup. Temptation was knocking at the door. One night I even dreamed I did it. When I awoke I was burdened at the thought that a set of antlers could mean that much. I didn’t like the feeling or the temptation, so I decided not to hunt in that area at all. After I made my decision to hunt elsewhere and not subject myself to further temptation, I was free of the burden of my conscience. But I had to make the decision to avoid temptation. Sometimes we allow ourselves to be tantalized by things that we know are wrong until they finally have quite a hold on us — even control us. Sometimes the perfect setup is not just the ideal place to bag a trophy; it’s also the perfect situation to fall into the trap of idolatry, as noted in 1 Corinthians..
1 Corinthians 10:13-14 (New International Version)
13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 14Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.
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