Bad Luck and Bucks

Last week, a massive buck was killed only a few miles from where I hunt. Rumors are flying about this deer. One of which is that it could break the Kansas state record. I was talking to a couple guys at church about it and one of them mentioned that there is a lot of luck that goes into killing a big deer. This story is no exception. From what I have heard, the guy who killed it actually fell asleep in his deer stand and when he woke up from his nap there stood this huge deer feeding not far from where he sat. I think that’s called being in the right place at the right time.
I have heard of other stories like this, as well. Like a few years ago in Nebraska. A hunter bought his gun, tag and deer stand the night before opening day. The next morning he put his stand up on property he never hunted before. And loaded a gun he had never shot before. Before the morning was over, he then killed a monster buck.
Luck and chance play a huge part in deer hunting. Of course so does bad luck. There is nothing like sitting there watching a decent buck work its way toward your stand. Knowing that if it just moves another 5 yards it will be within your “range.” Only to have the deer stop, turn around and walk away. Or having a deer stop behind a tree or your arrow hit a branch or the site on your bow is broken and you don’t know it until you let loose an arrow, which was not even close.
Then there is that windy day, when I sat on the ground in a homemade blind of burlap and electric fence posts. I took my quiver off my bow and hung it on one of the posts holding up my blind. Two does came out on the field less than 10 yards from me. They didn’t even know I was there. Before I could even raise my bow, the wind blew my quiver causing it to sway back and forth like a flag in the wind. That in turn caused the does to high tail it to the other end of the field. Or there is the night I sat on the side of this field and watched the deer feed 300 yards away. The next night I moved down closer to where they had come out only to see them, this time, a few yards from where I sat the night before.
There is more to deer hunting than just luck. I know from personal experience that the majority of deer that are killed every year is because the hunter spent hours preparing for the hunt. Days are spent scouting, glassing, and practicing at the range. The hunters I know spend enormous amounts of time and energy making sure everything is ready for the big day. Sometimes that pays off. Other times we go home empty handed. This is why it is called hunting not killing. Deer hunting is a combination of being prepared, luck and bad luck. Of course, personally, if it wasn’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck.
There is one area of our life that luck doesn’t play a part. Luck is not involved in our spiritual growth. If we choose to leave our spiritual growth to luck, we won’t grow.
2 Peter 3:18
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

That word “grow” used here actually means to “cause to grow”. The emphasis here is on us doing certain things that will result in us developing our lives spiritually.
So the question is, what are you doing right now spiritually that is helping you grow spiritually? And on the other side of that, what else do you need to do that will help you continue to grow?