Sometimes we wonder why God brings people into our lives or puts us on to paths that we don’t quite fully understand why he did so. And sometimes, the answer to why he did so, may not come for several days, weeks, months, or years. Sometimes the answers why are very clear. Other times, the answers why are not so clear. But I can tell you this, when we do realize why God did what he did, it can be overwhelming and so very incredible. Our relationship with Little Flat Creek Ranch (LFCR) is very clearly an example of what I am talking about. We have hosted hundreds of veterans and their family members at this property since 2018. We have been there dozens, and dozens, and dozens of times. What’s even more incredible to me is how our relationship started. It’s too lengthy to put into this devotion. Here is the short version.
In 2017, Barbara and I were asked to serve as hosts for the Catch A Dream Foundation (CADF). I am sure you have heard of Make-A-Wish. CADF is the hunting/fishing version of it. As we were going through the application process, we got to meet with the President of CADF. And we met with the owners and managers of LFCR. After I got sick and had surgery, we had to push pause. Everyone understood. Then, after Charlie 22 Outdoors was founded, I bumped into the owner of LFCR. That was at a high school basketball game of all places. He wanted to hear more about what we were doing. And that led to us hosting our first Whitetail deer hunt on their property in 2018. As stated earlier, we have been on the Ranch around dozens of times now. There really are no words that I can say to describe how blessed we are to get to work with them. No words. When you get time, find them on the Internet. You will see why I say that.
Now here’s my attempt to explain why this all happened. Please bear with me. God puts us on a path that leads to eternity with him. And unfortunately, this path is not paved. It’s not smooth. It’s not flat. It’s a path that is full of bumps. Turns, twists, obstacles, etc. The enemy does all that he can to you push us off of the path. Pull us off the path. Whatever it takes, he does. Believe me I know. He’s pulled me and pushed me many times. He does this because he knows that if he can get us off the path, he then can influence us. Let’s remember he is a snake. And a lot of us will jump off the path we are walking on when we see a snake on it. Now, here is what is cool about our God. Not only does he put us on the path, he provides us the power to stay determined on the path. And let’s remember this as well…Satan is a snake because God has disarmed him and defeated him. God is our armor against him. We didn’t know it when we founded Charlie 22. But God put everyone involved with LFCR in our path for a reason greater than we could ever realize. We know our mission is to show hope, love, and a personal meaning through God’s grace. And that’s exactly what’s happening at that piece of the creation.
