#32 Robin Hood! Thoughts from the Back Deck...

When I was MUCH younger, like Cub Scout age, I found out we were going as a group, to an archery range! 
This was going to be amazing! I had seen bows and arrows before. My dad has a small sporting goods store and he had Bear bows! Some man named Fred Bear was a great bow hunter and he personally made each and every bow and every arrow (I thought) that my dad had to sell. I had seen people shoot arrows on TV. They could pick up an arrow and it would hit the mark every time. I saw Indians ride on horseback and the horse was running as fast as it could and the Indian on the back of the horse could hang sideways and shoot people with a bow and arrow from under the horse's neck! I knew the story of William Tell. I saw the movie of Robin Hood. My mom really liked Robin Hood. She wolf-whistled at him! (1938 version!) I saw how Robin Hood could shoot so well, he split another man's arrow in two!
I had never shot a bow and arrow but I knew that for me to stand on a line and shoot at a target would be oh so simple. I would hit a bullseye every time!

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.
Proverbs 4:25

The long-awaited day arrived. We went into a big building with long lanes and targets at the end and a man standing at the front of each lane to help me and my friends get a bullseye every time. 

They talked about how to use the bow and arrows. They talked about safety.  They talked...and talked...and talked. I remember wanting them to shut up! I was ready to shoot some arrows!

Finally!

The bow and arrows were not like Fred Bear's bows and arrows. This bow was red and blue. It has a rubber handle. The arrows had plastic feathers and there was no Indian arrowhead! But it was going to be great because I finally had a bow and arrow in my hand!

1st arrow, fell short and skidded across the floor finally coming to rest at the base of my friend's target.  

2nd arrow, the man had me raise the arrow higher. I let it fly! Not sure where it went. 

3rd arrow, bottom of the big target. I hit the white paper but not in the rings! This is harder than I thought. 

4th and 5th arrow, I finally hit rings of the target but not a bullseye. 

Time to retrieve our arrows. Bows down. Arrow 1, 3, 4, 5. But where was arrow 2? I saw a man looking up and I went to see what he was looking at. Another man joined him and he said: "Well that is a first! I have never seen that before! Quite a shot you made there young man!" my worried face turned into a smile.

There between the metal light fixture and a 4' fluorescent tube light bulb was my arrow neatly wedged like a shoe horn between a heel of someone's foot and a new shoe. The bulb still shining bright, lighting the lane. 

As much as we might try, as hard as we work to keep our eyes directly forward and our gaze straight ahead... We all miss the target. 

That is what sin is. It's missing the bullseye! Oh, we may hit the target from time to time. We may even make a great trick shot that makes people look in awe! How frustrating!

Remember Jesus?! 
Remember that Jesus split the arrow of sin that brings death to us. 

Life is not about us making the perfect "shot". Jesus has already done that. He walks us up to the line of life and encourages us to fire away. Eyes straight. Gaze forward. Relax. He has you and me. God bless your day!

Peace out,
Andy


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