Christian Waterfowler Magazine - Spring 2020

Christian

SPRING 2020

WAT E R F O W L E R

PRESERVING OUR CHRISTIAN AND WATERFOWLING HERITAGE | THECWA.ORG

WINDING DOWN

LIGHT GOOSE HUNTING

SPECKS ON THE RISE

TABLE

of

CONTENTS

OUR HISTORY

3

LIGHT GOOSE HUNTING

9

SPICY DUCK OR GOOSE WRAP

13

SPECKS ON THE RISE

17

WINDING DOWN

22

MAXIMIZE YOUR HUNTING SEASON WITH YOUR RETRIEVER

23

THE BLIND BAG: SOUL GEAR FOR WATERFOWLERS

30

CHOOSE NOW

35

SENIOR EDITORS Ti m & R a c h e l l e S a l l e e CREATIVE DESIGN & EDITING Va n c e K l e m p l e COVER PAGE PHOTO To m M a r t i n e a u

CONTACT INFO INFO@THECWA.ORG 479.957.3033

PHOTO BY JOEY MELVIN C H R I S T I A N WAT E R F O W L E R |

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OUR HISTORY

“Preserving Our Christian and Waterfowling Heritage” The Christian Waterfowlers Association was formed by Tim and Rachelle Sallee in September of 2009. However, the idea for the CWA originated back in 2002 while on a duck hunt with his brother Anthony Sallee on the banks of the Arkansas River.

Tim was first introduced waterfowling while serving as a youth minister in Fort Smith, Ark. almost thirty-three years ago.

One of his youth members demonstrated using a duck call during a “Gong Show” talent night. He was fascinated with the call and after inquiring about the call and duck hunting was invited to go on a hunt by the youth and his older brother.

The hunt experience was incredible, with awesome weather and the perfect sunrise.

Right after daybreak about fifteen mallards flew over our backs and circled back with their wings cupped and feet down. “Take Em,” yelled the youth, as Tim raised his gun to shoot. He was so moved by seeing ducks decoy, that he shot three times and did not hit one duck.

However, a few weeks later on his second hunt he bagged his first ever mallard and was hooked on duck hunting for life.

Tim then introduced waterfowling to his older brother Mark Sallee, his younger brother Anthony Sallee and Mark’s sons Mitchell and Matthew. He always looked forward to spending time in the duck blind with his family and friends each year.

Anthony moved to Nashville, Tenn. in the 1980’s and early 1990’s to play bass for the Christian band “White Heart.” He went on to play for Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant and Matthew West to name a few. While taking a break from the road, 3

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he traveled back home to spend time with family as well as spend time in the duck blind.

While on a hunt in 2002, Tim and Anthony first brought up the idea combining a passion for Christ with the passion for waterfowling, as well as the idea of a Fellowship of Christian Athletes for waterfowlers, but the idea didn’t get much further than Anthony designing a sample logo or two.

After hosting a Wild Game Dinner in September of 2009, Tim saw firsthand the impact of bringing sportsmen together for fellowship and introducing them to Christ. The idea for CWA resurfaced.

After much prayer and consideration, he felt it was time move forward with the launching of the CWA website and forum as well as crafting the CWA mission statement: “Preserving Our Christian and Waterfowling Heritage” Since that time the CWA has launched close to fifty chapters in fifteen states and continues to add new chapters each month. Chapters meet monthly for food, fellowship, pro-tips, devotion and an invitation to know Christ. Chapters also hold various youth hunting, conservation, and CWA Hunts for Hereos events.

including the CWA International Duck and Goose Calling Competition, Duck Waterfowler’s Trap Shooting Competition, 3D Archery Competition and Wild Waterfowl Cook-off Competition. Other activities included our Blue Wings Youth Kidz Zone featuring a fishing derby, seminars, Outreach/Fundraiser Dinner, Sportsman’s Chapel, concerts and more.

In 2012 the CWA held its first Blue Wings Youth Waterfowl Hunting Event during the Oklahoma youth waterfowl hunt. After receiving requests to organize a Wounded Veteran’s Duck Hunt, the first ever CWA Wounded Veteran’s Waterfowl event took place in January of 2014 at the Crooked Slough Hunting club in east Arkansas.

Since the beginning of CWA, hundreds of lives have been impacted by the Gospel of Christ. We invite you to join the Christian Waterfowlers Association today in preserving our Christian, waterfowling heritage. To become a member visit www.thecwa.org or call 479-957-3033 for more information.

(The Christian Waterfowlers Association is incorporated in Arkansas as a non-profit religious organization. The Christian Waterfowlers Association is also registered with the IRS as a 501 (C)(3)non-profit religious organization. All donations are tax deductible except for any gift items and magazine received with your support membership)

The CWA also hosts an annual benefit banquet. In 2019 the CWA celebrated its 10th Annual International Waterfowl Festival & Outdoor Expo. Over the past ten years, thousands have attended from nineteen states and Canada, with many accepting Christ during the two day event.

The event features many competitions

CWA Founders Tim & Rachelle Sallee

Anthony Sallee (Left) Tim Sallee (Right)

2020 BENEFIT BANQUET JUNE 6, 2020

CROSS CHURCH - SPRINGDALE, AR For Tickets visit: www.store.thecwa.org

SPECIAL GUEST

JUSTIN MARTIN DUCK DYNASTY/DUCK COMMANDER

PHOTO BY PHIL KAHNKE

LIGHT GOOSE HUNTING KEYS TO SUCCESS

BY TIM SALLEE & JON BOUNDS

If you are not ready to put up the calls and guns and close out the season just yet, the Light Goose Conservation Order offers an extended waterfowl season.

I recently asked Jon Bounds, who started hunting waterfowl at the age of nine as well as having been a waterfowl guide and outfitter for the past 22 years in the Northeast AR area, to list some snow goose hunting tips that are good for the regular season or the Spring Conservation Order.

KEYS TO SUCCESS Scouting If you are hunting the X or Migrators, you have to be where the geese want to be or are passing through. In order to find these locations, it will require a lot of time and fuel, but proper scouting is essential for success.

Decoys and Gimmicks You can kill snow geese with smaller spreads. I have shot 150 geese on a hunt with only 200 decoys in the spring. Bigger definitely doesn’t hurt! When it comes to the gimmicks, they come and go in world of snow goose hunting. It’s ok to have a few, but your money will be better spent on beefing up your spread.

Concealment If you’re hunting in layout blinds or whites, being hidden is essential. Make sure your layouts blend in as well as make all of the edges of your blinds disappear. For instance, we may have as many as 12 blinds in a field set up side- by- side with decoys placed between the blinds. We then will roll out two rolls of camo (similar to the environment that we are hunting) across the boot bags and the backs of the blinds.

If you are hunting in whites, make to sure to wear a white facemask and have comfortable layout boards. Pack decoys fairly tight around you and try to spread out as much as possible. We like to put 3 or 4 feet between each person. When running sock style decoys, try to have a few dozen with the longer stakes so you can actually lay under the decoys.

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PHOTO BY TANGLEFREE

E-Caller Loud isn’t always better. Using an e-call is a lot like blowing a duck call. You want it to be able to reach out, get their attention and be able to get softer as they approach. There are several calls on the market now with remotes. We recommend finding one that screams and produces good clear crisp sounds on the softer end.

Wind As with hunting any waterfowl, wind is a factor.

With snow geese, it’s a major factor. We keep hunting logs for every day that we are in the field. We log the area hunted as well as the time and estimate of how many birds were in the area the day before. We record the wind speed and direction along with how many birds were harvested. On days that we have less than a 10 mph wind, our harvest numbers drastically decrease. It is best if possible to try and choose your hunting days on days with 10+mph winds.

For the seasoned snow goose hunter, these are great reminders that Jon gives of what you probably already know and have experienced first hand. For those who have never hunted snow geese or are just getting started, I would recommend that you find a reputable outfitter, book a hunt, and see how they apply some of these tips on their hunts. That will give you a better idea of what all is involved in producing a successful snow goose hunt.

I would offer the following tips in choosing the right Snow Goose Hunting Outfitter:

1 PERSONALLY SPEAK WITH THE OUTFITTER After searching the internet or following a recommendation from a friend, personally contact the outfitter and ask a few basic questions about how they operate.

I would recommend if planning to stay overnight that you find out what the accommodations are like. Many times you see a photo of an incredible looking lodge on the website, but after showing up you discover that the lodge is more like a bunk bed in the garage of the outfitter’s home. Inquire about what meals are included and if snacks are included out in the field, etc.

As far as the hunt goes, I would ask questions about how many decoys they use and if they expect the client to help with the setup or not. Ask about the type of blinds that they use, layout or dressing in a white suit while lying in the decoys on a mat.

Ask about what kind of calling will be used such as snow goose calls or electronic callers or a combination of both. Also ask about their harvest numbers the for the previous seasons. Most reputable outfitters are able to consistently get their clients on the birds and are able to rack up a large number of birds given the daily no limit count during the conservation order.

JON BOUNDS

2 PERSONALLY CONTACT REFERENCES I would get as many references as possible, contact them, and ask about their personal experience with the outfitter. You can’t always depend only on an outfitters social media page or website list of references. Many times they can be manipulated to favor the outfitter. The best kind of reference is to speak with someone you know who has personally hunted with the outfitter and if they were satisfied and would return or not.

If you feel that your questions have been adequately answered after speaking with the outfitter and your references, and feel good about booking the hunt, then you can proceed in making the arrangements for securing your hunt. I would strongly recommend requesting a receipt of your deposit, a copy of your hunt reservation dates as well as a signed detailed agreement for the hunt. This will protect you as well as the outfitter.

Taking advantage of the Light Goose Conservation Order will not only extend your waterfowl season, but also allow you to take part in the snow goose waterfowl conservation effort in managing their population as well as helping to save their tundra habitat.

Tim Sallee CWA Founder

PHOTO BY TANGLEFREE C H R I S T I A N WAT E R F O W L E R | 1 0

SPECKS ON THE RISE

BY TIM SALLEE

I can remember harvesting my first White Fronted Goose (Specklebelly) back in 2012 while hunting with Buster and Chris Holzer of Livin’ Loud Outdoors in Central OK. We were mainly hunting Canada geese but were fortunate to have several Specks come in with larger groups of Canada geese. Over the years whenever I would hunt in East Arkansas or the boot hill of Missouri, I noticed that the friend or outfitter that I was hunting with would add some speck floaters and full body decoys to the side of our duck spread. Several times we were able to call in and harvest specks as an added bonus.

My interest in hunting Specks really began to peak about the time that several contest callers asked me if we could include a Speck Goose Meat Calling Contest in our annual International Waterfowl Festival Calling Competition. I could not believe just how many speck callers responded and attended the event. One year we ended up having a record 16 two-man teams calling in the competition. So why the sudden interest in hunting and calling White Fronted Geese?

Casey Waterson, Co-Founder of Speck HQ says that “Many variables contribute to the growth of Speck Hunting. A large population growth over the last 10+ years along with the changes in weather and agricultural farming habits have shifted the Winter habitats. As a result of those changes, a surge of new hunters have sprung a parallel need for Speck calls. Fifteen years back to the present there were maybe 10-12 really good guys competing and breaking strides in Specklebelly calling. That number has changed, these kids are learning quick! In the past 4 years the number of contests have tripled. Real money and prizes are being offered. A lot of respect should be given to those original few in recognizing their efforts in sharing their passion for Speck calling and hunting.

They have mentored countless new guys that are hungry to learn.

They are passing the torch to the next generation.”

Matt Roberson, CWA - L’Anguille River Chapter Leader from Wynn, Arkansas shared how he has observed the growth of Specks as well as Speck hunting in the East AR area over the years. He said that when he first started duck hunting around 25 years ago, he would always see large groups of Snow geese with a hand full of Specks off to the side. Over the years he witnessed the Speck population increase due to the abundance of food in the Arkansas Delta. At the peak of the Speck season, the number of Specks totaled around one million specks across the country. In November of 2019, it was estimated that East AR was holding some 250,000 of the entire population of Specks.

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MATT ROBERSON

Matt also noticed the increase of Speck hunters over the years as local duck hunters and outfitters would hunt for ducks early, then rest the ducks in the afternoon by switching over to hunting Specks. This introduced more and more hunters to Speck hunting. Hunters were also drawn to Speck hunting due to an early hunting season beginning at the end of October. Specks are the first birds to migrate other than Teal and as a result, an early season was introduced in Arkansas. Matt said that during the early season of 2019, his group harvested around 150 Specks for the week.

Matt was first introduced to Speck hunting from a fellow service member that he met while serving in the military who was also from the East AR area. They started hunting together and have not missed a Speck hunt together each year since they first met.

He said that like any type of waterfowl hunting, you have to learn your craft. You have to learn how to communicate by learning how to call. Matt uses three different Speck calls that allow him to have three different tones to choose from. He uses calls from Riceland, Red Bone, and Vendetta. You then have to learn their behavior patterns and what decoys work best in decoying Specks. Matt uses a combination of Hardcore full body decoys and Dive Bomb Silhouette decoys.

Even though Matt has been hunting now for many years, he said

that he is still learning and working to improve each year.

If you are interested in Speck hunting, Matt recommends finding a mentor to instruct you. This will save you a lot of wasted time, effort and energy from trying to learn by trial and error. Another option is to book a Speck hunt with a reputable outfitter. However, Matt says that you have to be cautious when searching for Speck hunting outfitters.

He said that due to the increase in the Speck population as well as hunters, he has also observed the gradual commercialization of Speck hunting.

As a result, some outfitters may be more interested in numbers and filling up dates than working to provide an ideal Speck hunting experience. So use caution whenever searching for a Speck hunting outfitter.

Now that the season is over, this would be a great time to explore getting into hunting the great White Fronted Goose around the end of October in East Arkansas.

PHOTO BY BRANDON FIEN

Tim Sallee CWA - Founder

TIM SALLEE GOOSE HUNTING

KEVIN HUTCHESON 479.601.1299

WINDING DOWN

BY BENJAMIN LYLE

As we quickly approach the end of the season, it’s a good time to reflect on how it all went this year. For us in the Southeast, it’s been a slow season with unreasonably warm weather, but that’s not something we can control and everyone has been fighting the same battle. As with many things in life, our struggles can teach us valuable lessons while strengthening our resolve to find a better way. Regardless of how exhausting the grind, we do it because were passionate about the connection with our brothers and with nature as both have a way of energizing our souls that words just can’t seem to capture.

While we prepare to seal the envelope on this year’s duck season, be sure to record what you’ve learned over the past few months in an effort to hopefully make this fall’s preparation more successful. It’s easier to remember exactly what you did on the days where everything falls into place perfectly, but sometimes, we have the opportunity to learn more on the days where we are only able to scratch out a duck here and there. Did we setup on the wrong side of the slough? Are we flaring the ducks because we don’t have enough cover? Sure, some days it’s completely up to the ducks, or the weather as it has been this year. Due to the lack of “new” ducks this year, we even coined a new word. We pretty much gave up on ducks actually “working” our spreads and just started hoping we could get them to “swircle”. That’s where we hope they swing by close enough for a decent shot as they circle our decoys a couple times. Feet-down, finesse calling, make sure there’s a hole in the decoys for the ducks to land type hunting was just non-existent this year!

You will only hunt this season once. For some of you, that may be a relief… for others, it may provoke sadness as you know this season’s adventures may be the last you will experience with a certain friend, loved one, or adored retriever. As the pre-hunt anticipation and the excitement of the successful days fades

away with the voices of the tales told only in the duck blind, so will the exhaustion and grueling effort exerted in the pursuit of our winged nemesis be forgotten and transferred to our mental recycling bin. Whether you’re a writer, photographer, or just a guy with a phone, I urge you to find a way to document your experiences chasing waterfowl so that the memories of all the season’s good times, tasty meals, and even awkward bloopers will be remembered for years to come. Don’t let your years run together and erode your memory as your grandchildren deserve the details that will make them feel as if they were there, standing in the timber right next to you.

Even though the ducks were scarce and the weather was backwards, the memories made are never dependent on success in the field. Remember your experiences and the good times with friends as you look forward to doing it again next year with a more strategic plan and anticipating hopes of a stronger migration.

Benjamin Lyle Owner - BearKraft Game Calls CWA Member

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PHOTO BY BRANDON FIEN

SPICY DUCK OR GOOSE WRAP Don’t let the word “spicy” turn you away from this recipe. The amount of spicy heat can easily be adjusted, or eliminated altogether. You can turn down the heat by removing the ribs and seeds from the pepper and reducing the amount of Sriracha sauce in the marinade.

Prep Time Cook Time Servings:

15 mins 15 mins 4 servings

Scott Leysath The Sporting Chef

INGREDIENTS

HOW TO FIX

• 2 cups skinless duck or goose breast fillets sliced

across the grain • 4 large flour tortillas • Lettuce • Tomato • Jack cheese

1.

MARINADE • • • • • • • •

1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce 2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice 1 jalapeño pepper sliced into rings 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper 2 garlic cloves minced 2 green onions roughly chopped 1/2 cup olive oil

HERB MAYONNAISE • • • • •

•

2 large egg yolks 3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 clove garlic minced 1 cup vegetable oil 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs—parsley basil, chives, oregano, etc.

Salt and pepper

To prepare the marinade, whisk together all ingredients except the olive oil in a medium bowl. Once the mixture is well blended, add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking until emulsified.

2.

Add the sliced duck or goose to the marinade, toss to coat

evenly, cover, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours, turning occasionally.

3.

To prepare the mayonnaise, place the egg yolks, mustard, lemon juice, and garlic in a blender or food processor.

Pulse to blend. With the motor running on low speed, add the vegetable oil in a thin stream until the mayonnaise is creamy. Add the herbs and season the mayo to taste with salt and pepper. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

4.

Remove the sliced breast fillets from the marinade and pat dry. Cook in a hot, lightly oiled skillet for 2 to 3 minutes or until desired doneness.

5.

To serve, spread a layer of mayonnaise over each flour tortilla. Add the cooked breast fillets, lettuce, tomato, and cheese. Fold over the bottom flap and roll tightly.

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MAXIMIZE YOUR HUNTING SE

BY JOSH

Hunting season is a time that we all look forward to! It’s a time where we travel and invest countless hours into creating a successful hunt. It’s also a time where your retriever’s training can either falter or advance further than ever before.

Many times retriever owners stop training during hunting season and only focus on the hunt. This results in a dog that is rough around the edges after hunting season. On the other hand, if you handle hunting season the right way, you can come out on the other side of hunting season better off than when you started. That’s great news because it positions you and your retriever for a tremendous off season which ultimately sets you up to be fully prepared for the next hunting season. Keeping that in mind, let’s talk about how to get the most out of training during hunting season.

First things first, keep training when you’re not hunting. The worst thing you can do is stop training just because it is hunting season. If you stop training your retriever during the hunting season, it will likely pick up some bad habits from the blind, and that will compound after an entire season. Now you may be thinking, “My fall is normally hectic. We have football season, the holidays are coming up, and not to even mention all of the kid’s extracurricular activities. It might be tough to keep up a solid training routine.” You are not alone. I’ve felt that way, and that is why the next tip is so valuable. If you can maximize the time that you do have to train, then you will be setting your self up for success. Whether you have two days a week or five days a week, it will ultimately come down to how efficient and impactful your training sessions are.

PHOTO BY CORNERSTONE GUNDOG ACADEMY 2 3 | C H R I S T I A N WAT E R F O W L E R

After you are done hunting for the week, review your notes.

Think about things like: “Did my dog remain steady or did they struggle with steadiness?” “Did my dog obey all my hand signals?” “Did my dog keep hunting short of where the bird fell?”

Questions like these will help you pin point the areas that your retriever struggles with so that you can focus on cleaning them up. Don’t just focus on the problems areas, though, also focus on your dog’s strengths. If you want to have an incredibly impactful training session, then it is essential to blend your dog’s strengths along with weaknesses. If you focus only on the weaknesses you will likely get bogged down in your training; however, when you add strengths into the mix, you can keep things lively.

Keeping all that in mind and once you know what your retriever needs to work on, create a game plan that will help it succeed.

Train on the skills in the game plan until the next hunt and see if your dog improves any. If you don’t see any improvement, then regroup and try another idea. If they do improve, take

ASON WITH YOUR RETRIEVER PARVIN

After creating the lesson plan, the next step is to implement it and practice before the next hunt. During the next hunt, I would take notes and see how Beretta improved. If he improved, I would find something else that he could improve on, but if he didn’t, I would regroup and try another game plan or keep focusing on the current game plan. You can do the same thing too.

If you follow this example throughout the upcoming hunting season, you and your retriever will finish the hunting season off strong and set yourself up for an excellent spring training. Instead of playing catch up during the spring, you will be advancing forward like a well-oiled machine, and you will be setting your next hunting season up to be the best it’s ever been.

PHOTO BY CORNERSTONE GUNDOG ACADEMY

notes on the next hunt and make them even better.

Here’s an example of what it could look like: Let’s say I go out hunting for the weekend and I take my dog Beretta with me. Beretta crushed the marks, but when it came to lining on blinds, he struggled. He kept wanting to veer off the line, and this caused me to end up handling him more than I would have liked to. He also broke a couple of times. He seemed to have a lot of excitement from the hunt, and now I realized I haven’t worked on steadiness enough with him.

Josh Parvin Cornerstone Gundog Academy

Let’s take a look at the type of quick notes I would write down: ”Struggled with lining and steadiness, but he crushed the marks and handled well when I needed to handle him.” “Need to work on lining from 80-100 yards and need to work on steadiness.”

Photo Courtesy of Cornerstone Gundog Academy C H R I S T I A N WAT E R F O W L E R | 2 4

PHOTO BY JOHN TODD

PHOTO BY RED SHUTTER MEDIA

T HE BLI N D BAG: S O UL G EAR FOR WATERFOWLE RS

BY TIM SALLEE

One of my most memorable duck hunts, outside of the hunt when I harvested my first Mallard duck, was a hunt back in the early 90’s in East Arkansas. Rachelle and I were pastors of a church in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and one of our church members, along with his friend, scouted out an area to hunt about 20 miles or so north of Stuttgart AR. and invited me along.

At first, the weather forecast and road conditions were not looking favorable for the 2 hour drive, but the precipitation stayed further north, allowing the roads to be okay to drive on.

However, the temperature plummeted to around 9 degrees, freezing up all of the water except for the running creek where we were going to hunt. One side of me wanted to stay home in bed where it was warm, and not have to endure the cold as well as the long hike carrying all of our gear, breaking ice, and wading through the deep mud where a beaver had backed up the water to our hunting area, but I kept hearing the words “you can’t harvest any ducks staying at home in bed” so I got up and headed out.

When we pulled up to the parking area, we noticed a father and son who were getting ready to hunt our same spot, and asked if they would like to join us. It also helped having some extra hands to help carry the gear. Once we made it to the area we were going to hunt, we started putting out our decoys. I will never forget hearing whistling wings and splashes all around me.

I looked down and ducks were landing a foot from where I was standing. In the moonlight I could literally see hundreds of Mallards tornado down and pour into our spot. I could have easily reached out and grabbed them.

We could barely contain our excitement waiting on the legal shooting time to arrive. Whenever it was time to shoot, we had so many ducks down between the four of us that we had to stop and count the hens to make sure we did not go over the limit.

All of our hard work and extra effort had paid off and we were rewarded with a harvest of 4 limits in about 15 - 30 minutes.

I would like to tell you that every duck hunt that I have been on before and after that hunt was a great success with quick limits, but that isn’t the case. On several occasions before that hunt we did not even harvest a duck. But we were determined to keep going and not give up until it finally paid off.

I think often of the scripture in Galatians 6:9 which says, “let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

There have been many times in my faith walk as well as being in ministry for 35 plus years when circumstances were not ideal and times were tough that I could have easily given up and thrown in the towel. It’s smooth sailing when everything is going well, but hit a few bumps in the road and we find ourselves down, discouraged, moping around, and complaining.

That is exactly what Elijah did. Elijah had won a major spiritual victory on Mount Carmel. God defeated 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah. Then as soon as Jezebel threatened him, he ran away to the wilderness, sat down under a broom bush and prayed to die. However, God listened to his grumbling and used him to anoint new kings and prophets to do the work of God. So what do you do when you feel like giving up? First of all, you don’t give up. You keep on keeping on. Winston Churchill once said, “never, never, never, never give up.” Don’t even think about quitting and giving up.

I also recommend that you simply refocus on the Word of God. I notice that whenever I want to quit is whenever I start focusing more on my problems and circumstances and less on God and His Word. As long as I keep my eyes on Him and His Word, it keeps me from wanting to quit.

Remember that if you don’t become weary in doing what is good, at the proper time, you will reap a reward, a harvest if you don’t give up.

Prayer: Dear God, help me to stay focused on You and Your Word. Help me to withstand the temptation to give up. I want to succeed in all I do so that I can give the glory to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Tim Sallee CWA - Founder

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PHOTO BY STEVE OEHLENSCHLAGER

CHOOSE NOW

BY CHUCK MCALISTER

In the outdoors you will see the greatness of God and in Jesus you see the grace of God There is a reason why the hair stands up on the back of your neck when you watch the ducks as they prepare to land in your decoys or even when the tip of your fishing rod snaps down towards the water. God made you to know Him and is seeking you through the outdoors...And through His Son Jesus. In the outdoors you will see the greatness of God and in Jesus you see the grace of God.

WE HAV E ALL MIS S E D T H E M A R K Romans 3:23 - “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” It’s like trying to make a clear shot when the sight of your rifle is off. No matter how hard you try - you are going to miss. We have all missed the mark of the perfection that is required to get into heaven.

YOU ARE BE IN G H U N T E D Hunting, as we know, involves pursuing game.

The Bible tells us that we don’t have the ability to pursue God, but He is pursuing us!

Romans 3:10-11 - “As is it written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.”

HE PURSU E S YOU BE CAUS E H E L OV E S YO U Romans 5:8 - “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

However, you are also hunted by another!

1 Peter 5:8 - “Be self-controlled and alert, your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

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You are being pursued by Satan as well as by God. You get to choose who captures you.

W E H AV E AL L MI SS ED TH E MARK How do I let God capture my heart?

Romans 10:9-10 - “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scriptures say, anyone who trusts Him will never be put to shame.”

TO CONFESS JESUS AS LORD AND SAVIOR OF YOUR LIFE AS WELL TO DEMONSTRATE YOUR TRUST IN HIM, YOU CAN PRAY THIS SIMPLE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and I want You to capture me. I believe that You are God’s Son. I believe that You gave your life for me on the cross and was raised from the dead to save me. I surrender control of my life to You. I invite You to come into my life. I will follow You for the rest of my life.

Thank you Jesus for saving me.

If you prayed that prayer, please contact us as (479) 957-3033 or email tim@thecwa.org and we will send you some information about the decision you just made as well as where to go from here.

Chuck McAlister Founder Adventure Bound Outdoor TV Program Founder Promise of Hope Ministries Board Member CWA

Blue Wings is our initiative to teach and engage young people with the great recreation that is waterfowl hunting. We all have a call to pass on the knowledge and heritage of our pasttime to the next generation. At the Christian Waterfowlers Association, we do that through our Blue Wings events.

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PHOTO BY STEVE OEHLENSCHLAGER